Contractors Cited when Worker Plunges 175 Feet
OSHA issued two alleged willful violations, which include penalties of $140,000, to Tokyu Construction Fujiki Komuten JV of Guam, the management contractor for the project. The violations include failure to lockout/tagout the controls for or remove from the site a personnel hoist with known defects, and for failure to assemble and maintain the hoist safety devices according to the manufacturer's specifications. OSHA also issued citations for two alleged serious violations against Tokyu, with total fines of $10,000, for failing to ensure that a competent person supervised installation of the hoist and for failing to instruct employees on how to inspect the hoist's safety devices.
According to OSHA inspectors, Tokyu provided the hoist for subcontractor R&C Corp. to assemble and use, but did not provide written instructions in English that would have helped the subcontractor to safely maintain it. "Tokyu's manager just gave the R&C employees verbal instructions he had translated himself from the manual, which was in Japanese," said Leonard Limtiaco, OSHA enforcement director. "There was no way for workers to review the instructions or verify that they were erecting, maintaining, and using a safe hoist. Tokyu was directly at fault for not providing safety information to the subcontractor that could have prevented this tragedy."
An R&C Corporation employee, Vivencio Untiveros, died January 9 when the hoist cage he was operating fell 175 feet to the bottom of an interior elevator pit. OSHA fined R&C Corp. a total of $75,000 for one willful and three serious violations that directly contributed to Untiveros' death.