Two Colorado construction companies cited after worker’s fatal fall

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and HealthAdministration (OSHA) has cited Colorado Springs, Colorado-based HammersConstruction Inc. and Montes Construction LLC after a fatal fall at a Greenwood Village, Colorado, work site. The companies face proposed penalties of $177,893.

OSHA inspected the work site in March after an employee fell while installing metal roofing panels on a storage unit building. OSHA cited the two construction companies for failing to use adequate fall protection and restrict employees from standing on the mid-rails of scissor lifts. OSHA also cited Montes Construction LLC in January for failing to provide fall protection and the company now faces a willful citation.

“These employers failed to protect their employees from well-known and preventable fall hazards,” OSHA Area Director David Nelson says. “This tragedy could have been prevented if they had met their obligations and provided the required fall protection.”

Hammers Construction Inc. and Montes Construction LLC have 15 business days from receipt of citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.