Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Report for New Jersey: 43-Year-Old Construction Foreman Dies After Struck by Steel Pile

摘要

On August 29, 2006, a 43-year-old male construction foreman was killed when he was struck by a falling steel I-beam pile. The victim worked for a construction company in northern New Jersey. On the day of the incident, the victim and four other workers were in the process of pile-driving steel I-beam piles into several pits (each containing either three or eight piles) at the construction site of a large parking garage. The victim's job was to stand in the pit and guide the beam that was being hoisted by the pile driver (which functions as a crane and a hammer) to the appropriate position to be hammered. While the victim was guiding the pile, before it was properly located, the hammer dropped from its upper position. Since the pile was not in the proper location, the hammer struck the pile on its side, instead of the top. The fatal injury occurred when the beam then fell to the side, striking the victim.