After two serious safety incidents in consecutive days, the Boston-area’s largest contractor voluntarily issued a safety stand down on all projects in Boston through May 6.
The action follows one incident on May 4 in which three workers were injured, one seriously, after a catwalk collapsed during demolition of the 124-year-old Edison Power Plant in South Boston. A wall collapsed and landed on one worker’s legs and lower body, leaving him with life-threatening injuries.
On May 5, a worker was injured after falling 30 ft at a separate construction site in the city’s South End neighborhood. After Boston EMS responded to the scene, the worker from G&C Concrete was listed in stable condition at Boston Medical Center, according to local media reports.
US Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials responded to the fall and are investigating the incident, also per media reports.
Suffolk temporarily paused all work on its Boston projects through May 6 following the second accident.
“This safety stand down will include a comprehensive review and evaluation of existing safety standards and procedures,” John Fish, Suffolk chairman and CEO said in a statement. “We will also use this safety stand down as an opportunity to reinforce jobsite safety awareness and provide our teams the opportunity to secure, evaluate, clean and organize their jobsites for the restart of work. In the event this evaluation requires more time for an individual job site, that site may remain closed until the review is complete and prepared to safely re-open.”
