OSHA Approves Construction Restart after Southern Nevada Wrongful Death Accident at Lake Mead

Approximately two weeks after a freak catastrophic Southern Nevada wrongful death accident at the construction site of the third irrigation tunnel from Lake Mead to Las Vegas, the Silver State’s Occupational Safety & Health Admin. has allowed work to restart. To resume, the construction contractor presented safety plans, engineering documents and additional procedures to the Nevada worker protection agency. The Nevada water authority states that construction preparation will begin immediately with additional digging and drilling will restart within less than a week. One person suffered minor injuries, while another Thomas Turner, 44, was killed in the Southern Nevada wrongful death accident. If you are the relative of someone killed in a Southern Nevada wrongful death accident, contact Benson and Bingham for a free legal consultation today.

The accident happened when the support structure for the 20 foot tunnel loosened and high pressure gout and cement sprayed on Mr. Turner. He was killed instantly in the Southern Nevada wrongful death accident. After the accident, the remainder of the 12-person team working on that section of the tunnel was evacuated. Mr. Turner worked for the contractor who is working on the project, Vegas Tunnel Constructors.

While Thomas Turner was the first Southern Nevada wrongful death accident, he was not the first death at the worksite. In February 2010, Jose Chavez passed away from kidney disease, heart disease and diabetes while working at the construction site. While his death wasn’t due to an accident, the way the emergency was handled drew rebukes from Nevada’s OSHA watchdogs. On the day he died, Mr. Chavez had complained to supervisors of not feeling well, but since he was the only one available to operate certain machinery, he was convinced to return to work by his superiors. After completing his assigned task, Mr. Chavez was then taken by a co-worker to the work site’s first aid station. Once there, Mr. Chavez continued to get even sicker. The worksite’s safety manager then called the National Park Service for emergency rescue of Mr. Chavez, but in the confusion was not able to remember the address of the work site. The Safety Manager then loaded Mr. Chavez into his own personal vehicle and rushed him to the hospital. En route, Mr. Chavez passed out and was not able to be revived. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, three hours after his symptoms appeared. Southern Nevada wrongful death accidents come in many forms, so if someone you love was killed, and you suspect it was a wrongful death incident, please contact the personal injury attorneys at Benson and Bingham today.

Benson and Bingham is one of Las Vegas’ leading personal injury law firms, focusing on Southern Nevada wrongful death accidents, brain and spinal cord injuries and defective products. Our firm, founded in 2003, is a family business, founded and run by cousins Joseph Benson and Ben Bingham. Our success, as demonstrated by the $24,000,000 we secured for our clients in 2010 and 2011, comes from our relationships with our clients.