Report: NYC Construction Site Accidents Cause Injuries At Least One A Month
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- An alarming new report has been issued regarding construction site safety in New York City.
As CBS2's Steve Langford reported, the report said at least once a month in the city, a pedestrian is injured by falling bricks, hammers, or even glass.
Tourists may be the only ones looking up in New York City, but it may not be such a bad idea for everyone to do so -- given the findings.
Statistics from the Department of Buildings showed 18 construction accidents last year involving pedestrians -- the highest rate since 2008, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Last October, a piece of metal fell from about 10 stories up in Times Square, injuring two people on the ground. And in May of last year, a giant saw blade went speeding through the air along Ninth Avenue in Hell's Kitchen.
"I turned and saw the blade come flying down the sidewalk," a man said at the scene at the time.
A woman on the street was wounded after being sliced by the flying blade.
And not included in the statistics were more recent incidents such as the death of 37-year-old Tina Nguyen on West 12th Street in the West Village just last month. A piece of plywood from a condo construction site went flying and hit and killed her.
Structural architect Joseph Sage said the injuries are on the rise because workmanship tends to be "lax," and contractors are sometimes cutting corners when it comes to safety.
"The cost nowadays is a great percentage to the project, so obviously, it's the first thing that contractors seek to cut or to minimize," Sage said.
According to the Department of Buildings, construction site managers are being held responsible for safeguarding their work sites.