Thousands of Severe Injuries and Hundreds of Deaths Each Year

A recent accident in a Montville highway construction zone has brought the topic of New Jersey construction site injuries into the public eye again. In the June 3 incident, a drunk driver plowed through warning signs and barriers, hitting and injuring an on-site state trooper, Department of Transportation DOT engineer and construction worker.

Construction-related accidents come in all forms, including:

• Falls from ladders or scaffolding
• Exposure to toxic chemicals
• Highway/road-construction-vehicle strikes
• Faulty power tools such as nail guns, circular saws or air compressors
• Defective heavy equipment like bulldozers, backhoes, excavators, forklifts or cranes
• Electrocution
• Burn injuries caused by welding equipment, hot asphalt or other on-site heat sources

Every construction-related job site is an inherently dangerous place, and the likelihood of harm is high. Since injuries on construction projects are usually severe because of the treacherous nature of the work, the costs (physical, mental, emotional and financial) are extreme.

Highway, Building and Bridge Construction Sites Are All Dangerous Places

According to figures recently released by the National Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse, nearly 1,000 U.S. workers are killed in highway work zones annually. The majority of these accidents are caused by inattentive drivers who fail to respect speed and traffic-control restrictions. In fact, seven of those deaths occurred in New Jersey construction, maintenance and repair zones on highways, local thoroughfares and bridges throughout the state.

Building construction sites, erections of new property and remodels alike, are even more dangerous. The presence of power tools, heavy equipment, ladders, scaffolding and trenches on these jobs make this work hazardous even in the best of conditions. Injuries range from severe burns and crushed limbs, to heavy equipment strikes and broken necks sustained in falls.