A federal workplace safety and health investigation has determined Sealed Tight Roofing Inc., Hialeah, Fla., could have prevented a 28-year-old employee’s fatal injuries after a 40-foot fall through a commercial roof in March, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The company is not an NRCA member.
OSHA investigators responded to the Miami Gardens site and learned that as five employees of Sealed Tight Roofing worked to replace the roof, one worker fell through a section of the existing roof, which collapsed as the worker was moving a debris-filled wheelbarrow. The worker was transported to a hospital but later died.
OSHA determined Sealed Tight Roofing, operating as Oceans Roofing & Waterproofing Corp., exposed employees to fall hazards of up to 40 feet by not providing fall protection or personal fall-arrest systems. The company also failed to install covers or guardrail systems around holes in the roof and did not ensure working surfaces had the strength and integrity to safely support the workers.
Sealed Tight Roofing received citations for one willful violation and two serious violations and faces $84,379 in proposed penalties.
NRCA’s classes, webinars and products offer information to ensure you can keep your employees safe on job sites. Visit NRCA’s bookstore and course catalog or contact Rich Trewyn, NRCA’s director of risk education and training, at (847) 493-7575 or rtrewyn@nrca.net.
