Building Employee Killed in Accident at Montlake Mission Website in Seattle, WA

Seattle, WA June 2021, a 45-year-old construction worker was fatally injured by a steel girder on a construction site on State Route 520 in Seattle.

Authorities say the incident occurred around 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday on Route 520 near the Montlake Cross at a construction site linked to the area’s large-scale rebuilding, the Montlake Project. Preliminary research suggests the worker was struck in the chest by an 11,000 pound steel beam and trapped between the beam and the flatbed truck carrying it.

The construction worker suffered traumatic injuries and died on the way to a hospital.

The incident is still being investigated. No further information is currently available.

Commentary on the fatal work accident at the Montlake workplace in Seattle

There are many reasons this can happen on a busy construction site. With multiple contractors likely to be involved, given the size of the project, it is unlikely to be easy to get a straight answer as to who exactly is to blame for this tragedy.

Some may think the most sensible course of action is to notify OSHA and wait for their investigators to investigate the incident and then examine the agency’s report for responses. It is understandable to think that the government agency specifically designed to investigate occupational accidents could shed some light on this matter, but I have seen many OSHA reports in my day and that argument unfortunately does not hold up. Why? Because it takes OSHA a long time to reach meaningful conclusions (research ranges from a few months to a few years), and even if they do, the information it publishes is minimal. In addition, the only corrective action that emerges from their investigation is usually a negligible fine.

None of this is intended to be an abuse of OSHA. They are vital to keeping workers safe across the country, but their priority is to eliminate dangerous conditions in order to promote them future Security of not taking any action to help those who have already been injured. They are not victim advocates. The steps OSHA is taking and the steps required to get help after a serious accident at work do not really match. Hence, it is wiser for victims and families to work with independent investigators to get real answers.

Some may not see how relevant this is, as accidents at work and deaths are usually covered by employee compensation. Most of the time this is true, but as I mentioned originally, these construction sites are often busy anthills of many different contractors working together – some pour the concrete, some cut the rebar, some drive all the equipment or move materials, etc. merely prohibits an injured employee from making claims for damages against his own employer. If he is injured or killed by the actions of an employee of another company, employee compensation does not prevent him from seeking damages against the negligent party’s company.

Some may wonder why a victim who receives employee benefits also seeks help from the other company. Two reasons come to mind right away, but there are many others:

• It’s a matter of principle. The person who caused the accident should bear the cost of the damage, both as a penalty and as a lesson not to do the same again.
• Employee compensation is not a panacea. People don’t always realize that the employees are basically subsidizing their injuries. Its benefits never match what victims deserved before they were injured, resulting in a net loss that can be problematic for them and their families when recovering from harmful or fatal accidents at work. It’s certainly better than no help at all, but countless people have been frustrated by its limitations as they tried to get back on their feet.

Hopefully a careful investigation will reveal more about how this tragedy came about. Regardless of what is found, the victim’s family deserves help in recovery from their tragic loss.

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