Stamford Wrecking, of Trumbull, Conn., has formally contested OSHA's proposed penalty.
Springfield firefighters police officers carry a worker injured in a demolition accident at the former Technical High School on Spring St. SPRINGFIELD – A Connecticut demolition company, whose worker was critically injured five months ago when he was pinned under a slab of concrete after a collapse at the former Technical High School on Elliot Street, faces nearly $19,000 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration penalties.
The company, Stamford Wrecking Co., of Trumbull, Conn., has formally contested the proposed penalty, issued on June 7, Mary E. Hoye, area director of the Springfield OSHA office.
“It is in contest right now,” Hoye said. “It could end with a formal settlement or a trial.”
Stamford officials could not be reached for comment.
Stamford Wrecking is a subcontractor for Skanska USA on the project. OSHA’s investigation into Skanska remains open, Hoye said.
The accident occurred on the afternoon of Feb. 17 as workers demolished the former high school as part of a $110 million project to build the Springfield Data Center.
Sean R. McMurray, 51, of Wallingford, Conn., was doing demolition work about 12 feet off the ground when a slab of concrete fell. McMurray fell with the slab and was pinned by it and a robotic demolition machine known as a Brokk 90.
McMurray, who suffered a fractured wrist and three broken ribs, showed up at the Mason Square fire station a week after the accident to thank the firefighters and emergency medical personnel who pulled him from a pile of rubble last week and likely saved his life.
Ronald Raschilla, an American Medical Response paramedic who crawled under the unstable slab to initiate the rescue, likened the space in which McMurray was trapped to being in a coffin.
McMurray complained to Raschilla about his chest and then became unresponsive, the paramedic recalled.
“I realized his life was hanging by a thread and that we had to get him out of there,“ Raschilla said.
McMurray could not be reached for comment. His wife, Lisa McMurray, said that he has since returned to work with Stamford.
OSHA cited Stamford Wrecking with seven violations, all deemed “serious,” and has proposed a total of $18,810 in penalties. Violations are:
• Employer did not instruct each employee in recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions.
• Employer did not determine if the walking and/or working surfaces on which employees worked had the strength and structural integrity to support employees safely.
•Employees were not provided with planks not less than 2 inches by 10 inches in cross section as a working surface while removing floor arches between beams.
• Mechanical equipment was used on working surfaces that had insufficient strength to support imposed load.
• During demolition, continuing inspections by competent persons were not made to detect hazards.
• Anchorages used for the attachment of personal fall arrest equipment was not capable of supporting at least 5,000 lbs per employee attached.
• Personal fall arrest systems were not rigged such that an employee can neither free fall more than 6 feet nor contact any lower level.