One man was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital to be treated for spinal injuries and two more for various minor injuries after they sustained injuries in a Pensacola construction accident recently.
The three construction workers were working on the top floor of a Navy Federal Credit Union building when the floor reportedly collapsed. All three fell about 25 feet onto the floor below. Ten other workers who were near the crash did not wish to be transported to the hospital after the collapse, but Navy Federal reported that some of them ultimately did seek treatment on their own.
The accident occurred at approximately 5 a.m. in the rooftop structure of Navy Federal’s Phase II expansion project on its Heritage Oaks campus. The accident occurred in a construction zone, away from where employees are now working. The injured parties were all employees of Hensel Phelps Construction.
Construction was suspended pending a comprehensive review of the accident.
Two main options for people injured in construction accidents
If you have been injured in an accident at a construction site, you have two likely options. You can either file for workers’ compensation benefits or pursue a personal injury claim.
You are eligible for workers’ compensation any time you suffer an injury on the job, regardless of whose fault that injury was. You must be an employee of the company — and not an independent contractor. Personal injury claims, meanwhile, are only for cases involving negligence, in which that negligence directly led to the accident leading to your injuries.
For more information and advice on your legal options if you have been injured in a workplace accident, speak with a skilled Bradenton personal injury lawyer at Goldman, Babboni, Fernandez, Murphy & Walsh.