On December 31, 2012, a Knoxville Utilities Board construction worker died after receiving an electrical shock at a construction site near the University of Tennessee campus. Police said the worker, Michael Tallent, was standing under electrical wires at a water treatment plant when he was hit by a bolt of electricity.
Burn marks were visible in the soil where Tallent was reportedly standing. Police also noted that a crane with a line dangling from it was near overheard wires, but did not immediately say how the man received the shock.
According to Knoxville Fire Department Capt. Brent Seymour, Tallent was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where he later died. The Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA) is further investigating the death and whether the site had adequate construction safety.
TOSHA will conduct an inspection of a business and enforce safety laws if there has been:
- A complaint by an employee,
- An accident that will require the site to become frozen, or
- A regularly programmed inspection.
Although construction companies are obligated to inspect each site with safety engineers, accidents still happen. Construction companies must always place safety for their employees as their number one priority. You are entitled to compensation if someone you care about has been killed in a construction site accident. Contact our Nashville construction accident lawyer for a free initial review of your case.
“Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” – Romans 10:4