August 4, 2001
The plaintiff was a journeyman ironworker performing steel connection work on a construction project for additions and alterations to the existing Bergen County Jail Annex in Hackensack, New Jersey.
On the day of the accident, the plaintiff and a connecting partner were connecting a steel beam to two columns, approximately 25 feet above the ground. While making a routine connection between the plaintiff's end of beam, and the column, known as a "moment connection," the crane operator improperly pulled the beam in an upward direction, that is, he went "up on the load" without any hand signal from the plaintiff or his partner. This caused the steel beam to be pulled out of the connection catapulting the plaintiff into the air, causing him to fall approximately 25 feet to the concrete structure below. The plaintiff landed on his face, hands and legs.
The plaintiff sustained severe orthopedic injuries, which resulted in a complete loss of his ability to resume his pre-injury occupation as an ironworker. His injuries included a subdural hematoma, sinus and orbital fractures, a pneumothorax, fracture dislocation of the left radius and ulna, right distal radius fracture, dislocation of several fingers, fracture of his right knee, fractures of several toes and permanent injuries to his left foot. Because of injuries to his chest, which made it difficult for him to breathe, a chest tube was inserted. He also developed acute urinary retention and related complications. He was initially treated at Hackensack University Medical Center for nine days, after which he was transferred to Kessler Institute in West Orange. He was rehospitalized at Hackensack University Medical Center for further surgery, and returned to Kessler where he remained for over 30 days.
As previously noted, the plaintiff had been an ironworker since leaving high school early without graduating. Unable to return to his pre-injury occupation, he ultimately obtained a high school equivalency diploma in the fall of 2000, and enrolled at the age of 28 as a freshman at Montclair State University for the second semester of 2001, in a special program for non-traditional, older students.
