I represented the family of a young man who was working as carpenter on an athletic facility that was being constructed at the Submarine Base in New London, Connecticut. OSHA regulations require that openings in floors and roofs be covered to prevent falls.
The carpenters were working on the roof of the two story building, where they were fabricating wall panels that were to be lowered over the side of the roof and secured in place. Unbeknownst to the carpenter and his boss, some of the openings for skylights had not been covered. The carpenter and his boss lifted a wall panel and began to walk towards the edge of the roof when the carpenter fell through an uncovered opening to his death.
While nothing could bring this young man back, his younger brothers and sisters shared in the compensation paid by the general contractor whose safety program at the site did not insure that the skylight openings were promptly covered with plywood secured in place against accidental displacement.