BOISE, Idaho — The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Heath Administration (OSHA) has completed an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collapse of a Boise airport hangar that resulted in the deaths of three workers.
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The OSHA investigation found "appalling disregard of safety standards" by building contractor Big D Builders Inc.
OSHA learned that the company had begun erecting the hangar without sufficient bracing or tensioned wires. The construction also ignored numerous indications that the structure was unstable and visible curved according to the OSHA investigation.
“Big D Builders’ blatant disregard for federal safety regulations cost three workers their lives and caused at least eight others to suffer painful injuries,” explained OSHA Area Director David Kearns in Boise, Idaho. “The company’s irresponsible construction methods left the aircraft hangar’s structure extremely vulnerable.”
OSHA also found that the company failed to train workers to adequately build steel spans and allowed cranes and other construction equipment to operate in the mud and standing water.
“The tragic loss and pain suffered by so many is compounded by the fact that Big D Builders could have prevented all of this from happening,” Kearns added. “We cannot put a value on the loss of life, but we will use all our resources to hold employers accountable when they willfully ignore safety regulations and expose workers to serious and fatal injuries. We encourage other employers to remember the risks of ignoring federal OSHA and industry safety standards.”
The safety organization cited Big D Builders with one willful violation and three serious violations of federal safety regulations and proposed $198,586 in penalties. The agency also cited Inland Crane Inc for exposing workers to collapse hazards due to failurse to ensure stability.
Both companies were named in the lawsuit presented recently by attorney Enrique Serna who represents the families of two victims in the collapse. Speck Steel and Steel Building Systems are also listed as defendants in the lawsuit, but the two companies were not listed in the OSHA report.
A press conference where Serna discussed the details of the lawsuit is available to view in its entirety in the video player below.
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The companies have 15 business days to comply with the citations, request an informal conference with OSHA, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
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Idaho News 6 has reached out to Big D Builders who has no comment on the OSHA report or its findings at this time. Inland Crane has released the following statement on the report released by OSHA:
OSHA recently informed Inland Crane that their investigation confirms our initial assessment that neither Inland Crane employees nor equipment were responsible for the hangar collapse. Inland Crane extends its deepest condolences to all those affected by this tragic incident.
The statement does not address the citation Inland Crane now faces from OSHA after one serious safety violation was found in the investigation into the hangar collapse.
