Many of our Santa Clara County readers are probably getting excited about the new stadium being constructed for the San Francisco 49ers. The project has been moving along quite steadily, with an eye toward a completion date in July of 2014. Unfortunately, projects of this magnitude are seldom completed without a few construction accidents along the way. That was the case recently, when a worker on the site was crushed by a bundle of rebar.
According to the reports, this workplace accident occurred on the morning of October 14. The employee, a 60-year-old male, was unloading the bundle from a truck when it fell on him. The man was said to have suffered serious injuries, and he later died at the hospital. The man's employer, as well as the San Francisco 49ers, subsequently released statements about the man's death.
Although an initial investigation by local law enforcement authorities came to the conclusion that the incident was an accident, safety inspectors were expected to complete a more extensive investigation into the cause of the man's death. Oftentimes "accidents" on a worksite are actually more directly attributable to equipment failures or negligence on the part of another employee. This recent incident is even more unfortunate in light of the fact that it is the second deadly accident on the stadium project this year. Another employee died in early June as well. An investigation into that accident did not show any negligence on the part of another party.
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