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Removal of a Hospital’s Chiller Unit Qualified as a Building ‘Alteration,’ Which Made a Bronx Worker’s Fatal Accident a Valid Basis for a ‘Scaffold Law’ Claim

October 18, 2018 at 11:00 PM
by Newman, Anzalone & Newman, LLP
Removal of a Hospital’s Chiller Unit Qualified as a Building ‘Alteration,’ Which Made a Bronx Worker’s Fatal Accident a Valid Basis for a ‘Scaffold Law’ Claim

When you get hurt working a construction job in New York, the law provides certain opportunities for compensation in various situations. These situations can include, among others, falls or blows from falling objects. To achieve a successful outcome, you’ll need more than just evidence of your fall or the falling object. You’ll need proof that the work you were doing was of a type that is covered by the Labor Law statutes. Sometimes, the classification of the work you were doing can make all the difference between success and failure. To make sure you are providing the court the proof you need to get the compensation you deserve, retain a skilled New York construction injury attorney to handle your case.

An example of a lawsuit that turned upon this “type of work” issue was the case of T.M.’s accident. T.M. was a worker performing activities outside a hospital in the Bronx. In the summer, the hospital was cooled by a chiller unit, which the facility rented. That chiller sat atop a trailer situated on 173rd Street, utilizing hoses that sat on some scaffolding that was also situated on 173rd Street.

In early December 2012, T.M. and some co-workers were tasked with disconnecting the rented chiller. A co-worker experienced problems getting some wood free from underneath the trailer. As the men worked, a chain holding the chiller snapped and the eight-ton chiller slid off the trailer and