Construction work is one of the riskiest jobs and involves a high risk of injury and illness. One of the many risks that construction workers face is being caught between machinery or objects.
In fact, this is one of the top four causes of death among construction workers. Being caught in between machinery or objects accidents are the ones in which the workers are caught between parts of objects, between two objects, or are buried in something like a trench or a collapsing building.
Our Kansas City, MO work injury lawyers explain that some situations that can pose a serious threat of being caught between injuries include operating equipment, two or more moving objects, one moving and one stationary object and mashing objects. These include semi-trailer and a wall, a truck frame, and a lowering hydraulic bed and a forklift that tips and the floor.
Most common causes of being caught between accidents
Construction workers can be injured when caught between machinery or objects in a number of ways. Some of the common ways in which these accidents can occur include:
- When machinery is used unsafely, it can tip and cause workers to be trapped between the heavy equipment and wall, ground, or another object
- When machinery is not locked down when not in use or being repaired, or is not properly guarded, it can accidentally turn on and construction workers can get their body parts or clothes caught between the machinery
- If excavation sites or trenches are not properly supported, construction workers can be buried when they crumble
- When scaffolds are not properly braced or constructed, they can fall down and crush workers in the rubble
- When walls are not braced properly and jacks are not positioned on a firm foundation or secured properly, the load when raised can cause a part or whole of the building to collapse. This can crush construction workers.
- When workers are not adequately trained in the safe use of equipment and machinery, and how to avoid some of the common hazards of construction jobs, they can get injured or killed in preventable accidents
- When machinery is not properly maintained or repaired, it can malfunction and cause deadly accidents.
Construction workers injured in caught in-between accidents can sustain debilitating injuries that require long term and extensive medical care. These injuries often result in permanent disability. Some of the common catastrophic injuries that workers can suffer in these accidents include:
- Paralysis
- Muscle and tendon strains, sprains, and tears
- Traumatic brain injury
- Internal organ damage
- Amputation of limbs
- Fractures
- Spinal cord injuries
- Death
If you are a construction worker who has been injured in a workplace accident, you may be entitled to Missouri workers compensation benefits covering medical expenses and a part of wage loss. Contact the Law Offices of James M. Hoffmann at (816) 399-3706 to learn more about your legal right to workers compensation.
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