Confined Space Accidents Pose Special Dangers on Georgia Construction Sites
Construction projects are often chaotic worksites with many different types of equipment, business entities and dangerous hazards. There are dozens of dangerous hazards that can result in serious injury or even wrongful death on a construction site. One of the most dangerous and diverse types of construction accident hazards are confined spaces.
A confined space accident on a construction site can result in permanent, life-altering injuries caused by electrocution, exposure to toxic substances, explosions and other potentially dangerous hazards. A confined space on a construction worksite is one that has a limited path of access in and out of the space. Although OSHA has regulations regarding working in confined spaces, some employers are lax in enforcing these regulations or provide inadequate confined space training. Because one's presence in a confined space often involves exposure to hazardous substances, such as an oxygen deficient environment or toxic chemicals, construction workers must be extremely cautious when working in this type of environment.
Confined space construction accidents involve the risk of serious injury because of exposure to lack of oxygen, toxic gas, vapors, liquids, fire, extreme thermal conditions, free flowing solids or other similar substances within a space with limited access for a construction worker to exit the confined space. Some common examples of confined space hazards on construction projects include the following:
- Manholes
- Underground vaults
- Pits
- Pipe assemblies
- Underground storage tanks
- Tunnels
Safety requirements for working in confined spaces on construction sites include making a determination as to whether the work can safely be performed from outside the confined space. If work must be performed from inside the confined space, then appropriate safety equipment and precautions must be implemented. Confined spaces should be appropriately marked and any workers that enter these spaces should receive OSHA compliant training.
A person injured in a confined space accident on a Georgia construction site may obtain injuries because of a failure to utilize appropriate safety measures including the following:
- Use of personal protective equipment (i.e. hard hats, ventilators, etc)
- Evaluation of flammability of the atmosphere
- Ventilation testing
- Product instability
- Proper analysis of risk for release of hazardous energy
There are many serious types of accidents that can occur in a confined space on a construction project including drowning, suffocation, asphyxiation, fire, chemical burns, radiation exposure and explosions. These types of serious incidents can result in severe and permanently disabling injuries. Litigation of confined space construction accidents are challenging because there are many different entities on a construction project that may share responsibility for the accident. Our experienced Georgia construction accident lawyers always carefully evaluate the potential liability of third parties to identify the ability of our clients to seek more extensive damages than those permitted under the Worker’s Compensation system.
If you or someone you love suffers significant injury or someone you love dies, the experienced Georgia construction accident lawyers at Montlick and Associates provide tenacious advocacy and effective legal representation to Georgia construction accident victims.
Our Georgia construction accident lawyers are available to assist clients throughout all of Georgia and the Southeast, including but not limited to Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Gainesville, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Roswell, Savannah, Smyrna, Valdosta, Warner Robins and all smaller cities and rural areas in the state. No matter where you are located our attorneys are just a phone call away, and we will even come to you. Call us 24 hours a day/7 days a week for your Free Consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333). You can also visit us online at www.montlick.com and use our Free Case Evaluation Form or 24-hour Live Online Chat.