Reference no: EM133418623

In August 2019, a tragic incident occurred at a construction site in Chelmsford, Ontario, where a worker died after a bridge collapsed. You might be wondering, what happened? In 2019, the company contracted with the Ministry of Ontario to replace a culvert at Angler Creek, on Highway 17. The bridge was to be moved across the creek on rollers and set down on concrete landing pads. A crew of eight workers were at the site and seven out of eight of these workers were engaged in the operation. The other team member was on site acting as a driver and delivering other workers tools and water as needed, but he was not involved in jacking or moving the bridge. The supervisor was organizing the lowering of the bridge. The bridge was completely supported at each stage of lowering by a bottle jack on each corner. To advise workers on all corners of the bridge regarding the velocity of movement of each corner, the supervisor was only utilizing a level at one end of the bridge. The pace of movement between the several jacks was not coordinated mechanically. A jack at the northwest corner was seen to be leaning at one point during the procedure. To observe the jack, the supervisor walked to that corner. The 18-ton bridge collapsed as the supervisor turned to head back to the work area because of the jack tipping over. It tipped from the jacks at three of the corners. The worker, who was not engaged in lifting or moving anything, was killed when the bridge's frame crushed him as he sat on the concrete landing pad. After the bridge collapsed and shifted to one side, another worker sustained non-critical wounds.

According to research, the construction business is one of the most dangerous industries in terms of occupational injuries and fatalities. The most frequent types of injuries are caused by falls, being struck by objects, electrocutions, and being caught in between equipment. Exposure to hazardous chemicals and materials is also a significant risk factor in the construction industry. In this article, heavy machinery and equipment were being used by the workers to disassemble the bridge. This tragedy was caused by several human, situational, and environmental causes. The bridge was improperly sustained during the demolition operation, and the workers received inadequate safety gear and training. There were communication breakdowns amongst the project coordinators and the supervisors of the workplace. The company did not properly examine the risks of the job site which would have revealed dangers to potentially avoid the catastrophe. In the engineering process, the cribbing towers were not correctly analyzed leading to account for the sloped ground. These factors along with several others lead to the collapse of the bridge. There was a similar case wherein the company was involved in February 2021 which led to a fatality near Sudbury.

Have to explain recommendations and hazard identified in the case.