New York Injury Talk Blog

In a tragic example of the dangers of our city’s highways, a 27-year old Queens woman was killed in a NY Auto Accident on Saturday, April 19th when the car she was driving and a fire engine collided at an intersection in South Jamaica, according to an article published in the New York Times.

The accident took place during daylight hours, at approximately 9:45a.m. and the woman was driving a 1995 Nissan southbound on 155th St. The fire engine was traveling westbound on 111th Ave. with its lights and sirens on as it responded to a fire, according to police. Five firefighters were taken to the hospital after the collision with serious but not life-threatening injuries.

Every New York Car Accident has unique circumstances. In this instance, the parties involved in the crash add to the prospects of possible liability. The questions an attorney asks in instances where a municipal vehicle is involved in an accident differ from those they would ask if it were two civilian autos that were involved. Only an experienced NY Auto Accident attorney, like the ones at Wingate, Russotti & Shapiro have the experience to analyze the facts of the accident and ask the proper questions about cause and liability.

Continue reading "Woman Dies in Collision with Fire Truck" »

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In a natural escalation of the recent spike in fatal NY construction accidents and administrative miscues, Patricia J. Lancaster, New York City’s first female building commissioner, resigned on Tuesday, April 22nd. She becomes the first commissioner to leave the Bloomberg administration under a cloud of public controversy. The move comes as Lancaster faced escalating pressure from City Hall and growing criticism from the media and public at large after a series of administrative blunders.

The proverbial “final straw” may have come after an appearance at a City Council hearing when she admitted that the department had mistakenly issued permits for the East Side building where a crane collapsed last month, killing seven people and injuring 24 others. According to the article, Ms. Lancaster’s performance before the council “not only cast unwanted light on her department’s bureaucratic failings” and the recent rash of construction accidents, but “also drew attention to her awkward public manner and unclear explanations that diminished her credibility”.

Continue reading "NY City Building Chief Resigns Following Rash of Construction Accidents" »

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It has been one thing after another since the Deutsch Bank Building was severely damaged and contaminated after the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001. The New York Times reports that the troubled building has passed through a few owners and, most recently, last August 18th two firefighters were killed and two others hurt while fighting a blaze in the building. Just this week a family member of one of the dead firefighters filed suit against a government agency the sister claims created the dangerous conditions at the construction site that caused her brother’s death. Robert Beddia, 53 died as a result of toxic smoke created by the fire. Apparently, the fire was a result of a discarded cigarette on the 17th floor, and while an investigation is ongoing there are serious questions about a malfunctioning standpipe that made it impossible to bring water up above the fifth floor. The second firefighter, Joseph Graffagnino, 33, died as a direct result of the broken standpipe in the basement because it could not deliver water to the fire.

At a news conference last August, Mayor Michael Bloomberg indicated that three senior
fire officials had been relieved of their command as the investigation into the fatal fire continues. Mayor Bloomberg further commented that the local firehouse had conducted none of the required inspections of the bank building since 2006, even though it was on the edge of ground zero.

Continue reading "2 FIREFIGHTERS KILLED AND MORE HURT IN SEPARATE CONSTRUCTION ACCIDENTS AT THE DEUTSCH BANK BUILDING" »

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Proof positive that the dangerous nature of crane accidents are not reserved for New York alone, a seven-ton section of crane fell 30 stories in Miami recently, killing two workers and injuring 5 others. Fire and rescue officials said the collapse occurred about 1:45pm as a construction crew tried to lengthen the crane for work on a 46-story luxury high-rise overlooking Biscayne Bay. The 20 foot section dangled before dropping through the roof of the home contractors used as an office.

This crane collapse may appear eerily similar to the collapse that occurred in New York, but upon closer inspection, there are some major differences. While the cause of the collapse had not been determined, the circumstances in New York were unique, where a six-ton steel collar meant to help hold the crane in place broke free and plummeted from 18 stories high, leading the entire crane to detach from the building and fall toward the ground, with one section landing on a town house. In the Miami instance, a large 20-foot section of the crane itself weighing seven tons fell through the Spanish style home in Miami.

Continue reading "Two Killed in Crane Accident – This Time in Miami" »

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The New York Times cites a report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicating that while older women suffer more injuries on escalators than older men, it seems that 85% of all escalator injuries result from a NY slip or a fall.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s report is based on data collected and analyzed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which was published in the March issue of the Accident Analysis and Prevention journal.

Dr. Joseph O’Neil, an associate professor of pediatrics at Indiana University, indicated he had no idea why accident rates on escalators for both men and women had doubled from 1991 to 2005. The report shows that nearly 40,000 people over 65 were injured while riding an escalator-an average of 2,660 per year. Dr. Neil further commented that normally riding an escalator is not seen as a dangerous thing to do but that older adults ‘need to use caution’.

According to WebMD, there are several things older adults can do to prevent slip & falls:

1. Exercise regularly to improve muscle strength, tone and sense of balance.
2. If you have any problems with dizziness call your doctor to check to see if you have an inner ear infection.
3. Have your vision and hearing checked on a regular basis.
4. Know all the side effects of your medication and how they might affect your balance.

Continue reading "ESCALATOR INJURIES FOR OLDER ADULTS ON THE RISE" »

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According to a study performed by The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and reported in the New York Times, car-related fatalities among youth go up at age 12 and continue to increase for several years. The researchers, led by Dr. Flaura Koplin Winston, based the data after a review of more than 45,000 crashes over a 6-year period in all 50 states.

Researchers pointed to several possible reasons for the increase in youthful auto accident fatalities. One possible theory is that the children were more likely to be riding in cars with young drivers at the wheel. Failure to wear seat belts was another factor. The study indicated that passengers in cars that were driven by a 16-17 year old were at a substantial increased risk of death.

Young drivers are more easily distracted with passengers in the car. In fact, in a recent survey performed by the University of California, more than 1/3 of teenage drivers surveyed admitted they had been distracted when young passengers were in the car. The drivers surveyed cited talking, yelling, and arguing as distracting them while driving.

Continue reading "EARLY TEENS - A DEADLY TIME FOR CAR CRASH FATALITIES" »

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According to the New York Times, building officials believe it was highly unlikely that a missed inspection resulted in the deaths of 7 people on March 15th, however, Edward J. Marquette, 46, was arrested anyway after he faked a report indicating that he inspected a construction crane on the East Side of Manhattan on March 4th, just 11 days before the crane collapsed killing 7 people. The deaths occurred when workers were ‘jumping’ the crane, which is the process used to add sections to the tower, making it taller.

Officials believe that the accident occurred when a 6 ton steel collar, being fitted around the crane’s tower, as a part of the bracing operation, broke free-plummeting 18 stories, and shearing off braces in place on the 9th floor. An investigation is ongoing, and in addition to the crane falling two nylon slings that had been holding a collar in place high on the crane also broke.

Patricia Lancaster, New York Buildings Commissioner commented that every crane supposedly inspected by Marquette over the last six months would be re-inspected. Further, the New York Investigations Department will be performing a full review of the Buildings Department’s cranes and derricks division.

Continue reading "7 DIE IN CRANE ACCIDENT AFTER FALSE REPORT FILED" »

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An investigation is ongoing after forty-four year-old John Rodriguez, a contract worker, died last month after being electrocuted while installing electrical cables at a Consolidated Edison power station in Queens. Rodriquez suffered a heart attack after the New York Construction Accident when he touched a highly charged cable, and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital of Queens, where he was pronounced dead. Mr. Rodriquez came into contact with a live wire while attempting to disconnect a ground wire from what turned out to be a live wire. Essentially, Mr. Rodriquez became the electrical conduit when he touched the live wire.

Bob McGee, a Con Edison spokesman, declined to make a comment regarding what precautions might have been taken to avoid Rodriquez’s death. Apparently, however, Con Edison has been under some scrutiny for safety and maintenance problems because of previous deaths.

Continue reading "CONSTRUCTION WORKER DIES AFTER BEING ELECTROCUTED AT CON EDISON SITE" »

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According to the New York Times, an eight-car East-bound train uncoupled, stunning riders, during evening rush hour earlier this month. The incident, confirmed by Dan Stessel, a spokesman for the New Jersey Transit was confirmed as having happened on February 22nd, and has drawn criticism from the conductor’s union. There were more than 600 shaken passengers on the train at the time of the uncoupling, and it took an hour for workers to reattach the cars. According to the Times, the train was moving approximately five miles an hour when steel couplers which connected the second and third cars separated, leaving them several feet from one another and a potential new york train accident risk. The brakes were immediately activated, and no injuries were reported.

Couplers resemble two hands palm to palm and it appears a piece of debris hit those coupled hands with enough force to cause them to separate, although the actual debris was not identified.

The New Jersey Transit authorities instructed the crew to divert all passengers to the next stop-Newark Liberty International Airport.

According to Patrick F. Reilly, the general chairman of the United Transportation Union, which represents the 1,100 conductors who work for New Jersey Transit, the decision to restart the train with passengers still aboard, was a bad one. Reilly commented that all passengers should have immediately been removed from the train and the train taken out-of-service. Passenger Rick Smith, a 37-year-old graphics designer said, “We were just praying that we got to the next stop in one piece, without the train coming apart again.”

Continue reading "TRAIN UNCOUPLES - STUNNING RIDERS" »

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Dr. Philip Barie, the chief of the division of critical care at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan was quoted in the New York Times as saying, “If you believe in miracles, this is one.”. Dr. Barie went on to explain, “We’re talking about tiny, tiny percentages, well under 1 percent, of people who fall that distance and survive. Above 10 stories, most of the time we never see the patients because they usually go to the morgue” Dr. Barie’s quotes refer to the surprising recovery and ongoing recuperation of Alcides Moreno, a window washer who, along with his brother, plunged 47 stories from an Upper East Side apartment building last December. The fall, which killed Alcides’ brother, Edgar, happened when the scaffold on which they were standing while working as window washers gave way, plunging both men 47 stories to certain death. Three agencies continue to investigate the work related accident.

After more than sixteen operations; twenty-four pints of blood and nineteen pints of plasma, Alcides’ surgeon, Dr. John Boockvar, an assistant professor of neurological surgery at Weill Medical College of Cornell University indicated that Alcides is doing remarkably well after his latest operation to stabilize Alcides’ spinal column. This latest surgery on Alcides’ spine is meant to reduce the risk of neurological injury when Alcides again begins to walk and move about. After the fall, Alcides suffered serious injuries to his brain, his chest and his abdomen, as well as several fractured ribs, a broken arm, and two broken legs. But, amazingly, after falling 47 stories, Alcides spinal cord was intact and showed no signs of injury.

Continue reading "WINDOW WASHER SURVIVES 47 FOOT FALL FROM SCAFFOLDING" »

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In a story reported in the New York Times, Nuevo Estilo, a barber, was an unlikely hero last December when he chased down a hit and run driver of a minivan, who plowed down a man and kept going. Witnesses said the victim, 73 year-old Francisco Guerrero, was carrying several bags of groceries and was walking home when they saw the minivan hit him.

Estilo was working in a barber shop on Fourth Avenue at 52nd street when he saw the blue minivan hit the man. As Estilo chased the minivan a delivery driver followed. The Dodge Caravan minivan went on to ram into a parked car and proceeded, finally coming to a stop near 50th Street and Third Avenue - where he got out of the minivan and started running down the street. After a short chase, the hit and run driver was eventually captured by Estilo and the delivery truck driver. Police arrested the man, Lawrence Meyers, 38, and took him into custody after he was driven back to the scene by the delivery driver.

Continue reading "HIT AND RUN DRIVER KILLS ONE-CAUGHT BY NEW YORK HEROS" »

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At least seven people were killed when a large crane collapsed Saturday afternoon at a construction site on Manhattan's East Side. The crane toppled across the street and damaged three buildings, destroying a fourth. Twenty-four were reportedly injured following the devastating NY crane accident which occurred at 303 East 51st Street, near Second Avenue, at about 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 15. Ten people remained hospitalized, but the three critically injured victims were upgraded to serious condition.

Investigators said the collapse began Saturday afternoon as crews were "jumping" the crane - installing new sections on the 200-foot main tower to keep pace with what is to be a 43-story building. A six ton steel collar being fitted around the tower at the 18th floor somehow came loose and crashed down onto another collar on the ninth floor - snapping it loose from three 12-inch-wide steel beams that held it to the building. The three support beams were sheared off and with no supports remaining above the third floor, the 164-ton crane buckled to the south and snapped atop a building – sending a 75-foot section skidding over rooftops until the new york construction accident destroyed the four-story townhouse where two of the victims were standing in a kitchen.

Continue reading "Seven Dead After Devastating Crane Collapse in Manhattan" »

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