Some will recall the news story when a college student working as a videographer fell from a tall scissor lift. Another accident similar to that one occurred just outside of Lakewood, Colorado, when a man died from an on-the-job accident.
This past summer, a Colorado man was working for an out-of-state film production company at a race course. He had been setting up his equipment when he fell from an elevated lift. The report does not indicate whether he died immediately or later as a result of the injuries. Regardless, he died after falling approximately 20 feet to the ground.
Just recently, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the company after the agency investigated the accident. OSHA alleged that the film company had actually gotten rid of the guardrails that are normally on the elevated lift.
The investigation also revealed that the company had done the same thing on several other lifts, endangering any employee that used that equipment. The company is facing potential fines that can cost them nearly $100,000.
OSHA has also accused the company of putting their employees in danger by not following the federal safety regulations. With that, the company is also looking at citations for not adequately training employees on safely using equipment and for putting employees in danger of being crushed by the lift.
Though the film company is reaping the consequences of its actions, there are others who are suffering as a result. The family of the man who was killed had to deal with the loss of a loved one. There is little information about the relationship the man had with his family, but in some employee deaths, the employee had been the one supporting his family. Families that lose loved ones are often faced with financial struggles, in addition to the emotional trauma they’ve experienced.
Hopefully the citations will force this film company to take safety precautions and ensure that no fatal accidents occur in the future.
Source: The Denver Post online, “Film company cited in death of Lakewood videographer,” Howard Pankratz, 15 December 2010
