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Ascencion Molina Medina’s work-related death could have been prevented. That’s how I see the findings from South Carolina OSHA in the agency’s citations against his employer, G M Framing.
The 44 year-old was working in July 2015 at a construction project for a residential and retail development called Main + Stone in Greenville, SC. The general contractor of the Main + Stone development is Yeargin Potter Shackelford Construction.
The initial press reports indicated that Medina had “lost his footing” and fell about 30 feet. I wrote about the incident but, at the time, I did not have the name of his employer, G M Framing.
South Carolina OSHA recently issued citations to G M Framing. The agency proposed two serious violations related to fall protection requirements. One violation involves the requirement to provide a guardrail system, safety net system, or personal fall arrest system for workers at heights above 6 feet. The other violation involves the requirement to provide effective safety training for employees who work at heights.
When some local press initially reported Ascencion Molina Medina’s death, they called it an accident. An “accident” suggests the circumstances were unforeseen or could not have been avoided. South Carolina OSHA’s findings tell a different story. Call it cutting corners, call it poor management, call it breaking the law. Whatever you want to call it, Medina’s work-related death could have been prevented, it was no accident.