MAGNUS TRUCKING AND CONSTRUCTION

Employee crushed and killed when structure collapses

At approximately 3:15 p.m. on November 20, 1997, Employee #1 and a coworker were working on the second floor of a three-story concrete/masonry building undergoi ng complete demolition. Their task was to use hand tools to remove rubber from a room off the central hallway. The rubber was there from previous mechanical dem olition efforts using two large backhoes to break out window units and outer wal ls. The mechanical demolition had ceased over an hour before, and no other hand work was being done that would have affected the stability of structure. The cow orker had gone to the first floor to get a tool for breaking up the window frame s when the roof, the third-floor masonry ceiling, and the ceiling of the second floor collapsed into the room occupied by Employee #1. He was crushed and killed under tons of masonry, steel, and wood rubble. Two witnesses confirmed that Emp loyee #1 was clearly visible at the window opening and had been talking with one of them when the building collapsed; both stated that Employee #1 had no chance to escape.