• 17
  • August
    2010

A Maryland construction worker died last week after being struck in the head by an excavator. Morgan Tyler Gainer, of Ellicott City, was working at a residential construction site in Laurel when the accident happened. Authorities are not sure how Gainer came to be in the path of the excavator's blade.

Even though a co-worker immediately dialed 911, Gainer was already dead when emergency personnel arrived seven minutes later. Excavators can run from fairly small to monstrous, but even the most compact often weigh more than 2,000 pounds.

At last report, Howard County Police were still investigating the construction accident. The Maryland Occupational Safety and Health Administration, as well as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, were also looking into the incident.

Authorities are not sure whether or not Gainer was wearing a hard hat at the time of the accident and the company he worked for, W.F. Wilson & Sons Inc, has refused to comment.

The potential for accident and injury is high at construction sites. A brief moment of inattentiveness can result in serious injury or worse. If you notice signs of trouble or a potentially dangerous situation, don't wait for something to happen before reporting it.

Not all accidents are caused by management error or oversight, but a good deal are. It is not known whether any sort of mistake or carelessness was at play in the Laurel tragedy.

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