Video of Arcing Power Line Shows You Exactly Why To Stay a Safe Distance Away

Contact with overhead power lines is a major hazard when working on most construction sites and especially when working from elevated platforms or with heavy machinery. 

Read more

OSHA Issues Final Rule for Crane Operator Certification Requirements

Back in September, OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would extend the deadline for crane operator certification requirements.  Although OSHA 1926.1427 has required crane operators to receive certain certifications to be able to operate the machines since 2010, actual enforcement of that rule has been delayed several times.

Read more

[VIDEO] Semi Hauling 50 Foot Long Prefab Concrete Beam Tips Over in Intersection

As annoying as it may be to deal with sometimes, there is a good reason why trucks carrying oversized loads have spotters and flaggers.  We’ve seen the worst of what can happen when the spotter fails to alert truck drivers in time, like the one that caused a 2013 Washington State bridge collapse, so it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Read more

6 Injured After Partial Roof Collapse at New York City Construction Site

Just one day after Mayor Bill de Blasio signed a new law requiring at least 40 hours of safety training for all 185,000 of the city’s construction workers, a partial roof collapse at a Brooklyn construction site left 6 workers injured, 2 of them serious.

Read more

Researchers Discover Additive to Help Concrete Withstand 9.0 Earthquakes

Concrete is an extremely strong building material, but has a notoriously weak tensile strength.  In order to resist tension, bending, and shear forces, steel rebar or other reinforcement materials are added either prior to the placement or into the mix.  Even with reinforcement, concrete is still extremely rigid and prone to cracking.  In the event of a major earthquake, the uneven and horizontal forces can cause structures to crack and, in the worst case, cause failure.

Read more

New York City to Require 40 Hours of Training for All Construction Workers

Construction Safety is talked about constantly.   There are many construction companies that take it very seriously. There are also many that don’t. All will say it’s their top priority.

So what can a city do that’s facing regular worker deaths and increases in workplace injuries? New York City has decided to require extensive safety training for all of the 185,000 construction workers in the city.

Read more

The 10 States with Most Workers Killed in Roadway Construction Zones

According to the Workzonesafety.com, nearly half (46%) of all work zone-associated worker fatalities from 2003-2010 were caused by being struck by a vehicle. Surprisingly, only around 2% of those workers were killed by a drunk driver.  From 2003 to 2015 (the last year this data was updated), a total of 1324 work zone fatalities have been recorded, which averages to about 102 per year.

Read more

Chemical Reaction Causes ‘Explosions’ on New Jersey Construction Site

Residents living near a Jersey City, New Jersey construction site were frightened as they watched “explosions” of smoke coming out of holes in the ground. 

Read more

Construction Worker Run Over By Dump Truck While Using Portable Toilet

Portable toilets are the setting for many pranks around a construction site, but I never thought there could be something worse than just getting stuck in one.  Turns out I was extremely wrong, because a worker in New Orleans was run over by a dump truck while using the port-a-john.

Read more