Three killed after scaffolding collapses in downtown Raleigh

Three killed after scaffolding collapses in downtown Raleigh

A fourth individual was found alive but barely responsive in a smashed portable toilet after apparently falling in it.

Three people are dead after a piece of scaffolding that was being removed from a construction project on a high-rise building in downtown Raleigh, N.C. fell to the ground.

A fourth individual was seriously inured in the accident, which happened at Charter Square in the city — all four of them were involved in the construction project, according to an Associated Press report.

The general contractor on the project, Choate Construction Co., claims that subcontractor Associated Scaffolding was dismantling a scaffold on the exterior of the building — which is used to move workers up and down to different floors — when it suddenly collapsed. Choate issued a statement saying it was “deeply saddened” by the incident.

A witness who was inside the building working said he ran outside to help and saw that three men were in safety harnesses, and were likely attached to the scaffolding. He had heard a loud crash and a “huge cloud of smoke,” according to the AP report. He said the three men appeared to be dead.

A fourth man was found on a smashed portable toilet, likely after falling onto it, and while he was alive he was barely hanging on.

The State Department of Labor has announced it will be investigating the cause of the accident.

Apparently the subcontractor’s only job was to remove the scaffolding. It’s not the first time Associated Scaffolding has been cited for safety violations, with two serious violations issues in the last 10 years, according to the report. A 2007 citation was related to access equipment for scaffold platforms, and a 2008 citation had to do with the storage of welding materials.

Choate Construction, meanwhile, has been inspected 20 times in the state in the past 10 years and has received one violation that was considered non-serious and related to storing flammable materials outside without a fire extinguisher being handy, according to the AP.

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