A 44 year-old employee of the Finger Lakes Service Group fell from the roof of a building under construction near the old Genesee Hospital in Rochester, and died from his injuries shortly after being taken to Strong Memorial Hospital.
Other than that the death involved a fall of a worker on a construction site, there is no further information contained in the March 5, 2010, Democrat & Chronicle article by Gary McLendon.
A wrongful death lawsuit based on facts as presented here would seek monetary damages from the owner of the project, and the contractors involved, alleging causes of action under Labor Law §§240(1), 241(6), 200(1), and for common law negligence.
Labor Law § 240 (1), commonly known as the Scaffold Law, provides, in part, that: "All contractors and owners and their agents... in the erection, demolition, repairing, altering, painting, cleaning or pointing of a building or structure shall furnish or erect, or cause to be furnished or erected for the performance of such labor, scaffolding, hoists, stays, ladders, slings, hangers, blocks, pulleys, braces, irons, ropes and other devices which shall be so constructed, placed and operated as to give proper protection to a person so employed".
Labor Law § 241 (6) requires owners, contractors, and their agents to "provide reasonable and adequate protection and safety" for workers performing the inherently dangerous activities of construction, excavation and demolition work. Under this section of law, a plaintiff has the burden of identifying one or more provisions of the New York State Industrial Code, that were alleged to be violated.
Labor Law § 200 is a codification of the common-law duty imposed upon owners and general contractors to maintain a safe workplace.
In a death case such as this, one or more governmental entities, such as the NYS Department of Labor, or the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), will conduct an investigation of the occurrence.
It may be determined that, under the circumstances, the accident was unavoidable. However, if it is shown that there were violations of safety codes, the applicable portions of the Labor Law may be used as basis for suit.
Although the report says that the unfortunate worker was not conscious when he was taken from the scene by ambulance, any plaintiff would also sue for conscious pain and suffering, including "pre-impact terror" for the fall the man took from the roof.
