Death prompts cease-work order
City using licensed electrical contractors after warning from state in wake of employee’s electrocution
In the wake of a fatal accident in which a 27-year-old convention center employee was electrocuted on the job, prompting a ceaseand-desist order from state regulators, the city of Santa Fe is using licensed contractors for electrical repair and maintenance work.
The state Construction Industries Division ordered the city of Santa Fe last month to stop all such work by its staff after Tobin “Toby” Williams, a mechanical structural apprentice who had been on the job less than seven months, was electrocuted April 1 while working alone on a lift to change a light fixture in the Santa Fe Community Convention Center kitchen ceiling. He died two days later in a Denver hospital, where he was taken for treatment.
An accident report filed by his supervisor, Melanie Moore, operations manager at the facility, said Williams “appeared to cut or strip a wire that resulted in an electrical shock.”
According to state regulators, Williams wasn’t supposed to be working on his own. The law requires work by an apprentice such as Williams to be performed under the direct
supervision of what the state called a validly certified journeyman.
But the city’s lack of compliance with the law was more widespread.
“CID’s investigation has revealed that uncertified persons are performing electrical, mechanical and plumbing work on the convention center in violation of both the Construction Industries Licensing Act, its regulations and adopted codes,” Martin Romero, the division’s acting director, wrote in a cease-and-desist letter to City Manager Erik Litzenberg on June 5.
“The work being performed by the young man, Mr. Williams, who recently passed, required a certified journeyman,” Romero wrote. “Mr. Williams’ prior work experience is neither electrical or mechanical but rather landscaping. Not only was the work being completed by Mr. Williams not being performed by a certified journeyman but there was no certified journeyman present to directly supervise Mr. Williams in the work which he was completing as a city employee.”
Moore did not return a message seeking comment. Jesse Bartlett, assistant operations manager at the convention center, said in a brief telephone interview Tuesday that all media inquiries are still being referred to the City Manager’s Office.
“I know I’m not authorized to make any comments on the incident,” he said. “It’s really sad and, of course, my heart goes out to Toby. He was a good friend of mine, so it’s really unfortunate what happened. But other than that, I can’t comment on the incident itself.”
Romero, who did not return a message seeking comment Tuesday, wrote in his cease-and-desist letter that the two people “generally supervising the work” at the convention center, Bartlett and Rolando Suarez, a mechanical structural specialist, “are not licensed contractors nor certified journeymen.”
Since the city was out of compliance with the law, Romero canceled the city’s annual permit to perform electrical repair and maintenance work. The permit was set to expire in August.
“The city of Santa Fe is to cease and desist completing any construction work on the convention center or other city owned property without first obtaining permits through the division,” he said.
City spokeswoman Lilia Chacon tried to spin the cease-and-desist letter, saying it wasn’t “in regards to a safety issue, but rather a permit compliance issue.
“We are working to demonstrate compliance as described by the state process,” she wrote in an email. “We do not yet know when the annual permits will be reinstated.”
After receiving the letter, the city notified all personnel to stop electrical and mechanical maintenance work on city facilities, Chacon wrote, adding that the city is “utilizing contractors where necessary.”
However, “the city submitted for and received approval from CID to continue to perform maintenance activities on traffic signal lights since the city had licensed personnel performing or supervising these activities and because they are critical to public safety and welfare,” Chacon wrote. “The city team that maintains this equipment includes three licensed journeyman electricians who are also highly qualified in traffic signal maintenance.”
Chacon said the city also developed a policy to oversee maintenance functions, including requiring the public works director or other designated person to audit work orders to ensure the scope of work is permitted and workers are licensed.
“The city will file for new annual permits for each division that has responsibilities for maintenance and has qualified staff to perform those activities,” Chacon wrote. “CID has indicated that all divisions must submit all requested documentation before any annual permits will be issued. Engineering and facilities documentation is complete. Parks and convention center documents are being finalized.”
Neil Williams, Williams’ father, called the state’s cease-and-desist order a step in the right direction.
“What that cease-and-desist letter showed was several specific examples of the city’s failure to provide an adequate and safe workplace or comply with the trade licensing requirements of the state,” he said.
Neil Williams said there are still at least three ongoing investigations, including a criminal investigation by the state.
“I’ve met with the investigators, both civil and criminal, at the CID, and they told me that they had two essentially separate investigations going,” he said.
In addition, the New Mexico Environment Department is conducting an investigation. Preliminary results of that investigation found possible violations of the state Occupational Health and Safety Act. Williams, whose family filed a notice of intent to sue the city, said he also hired an electrical engineer who visited the site of his son’s death and looked at the convention center facilities. He said the engineer is still working on his findings.
Chacon also said there are several ongoing investigations “into what practices led to this tragedy.”
“These appear to have been longstanding practices that had not been reviewed in a long time,” she wrote, adding it was her understanding the city hasn’t taken any disciplinary action.
Asked whether he had hope that his son’s death might lead to some positive changes at the city, Williams said “not yet.”
“I’m looking forward for someone from the city government or the governing body or management to stand up and just outright admit what the failures were,” he said. “That would be a good first step.”
Williams said he wasn’t interested in pointing fingers at individuals but that the city as an institution has a problem.
“The future we looked forward to with Toby has been taken from the family,” he said. “It’s not just me, but he has a large extended family, and we all lost the future with him, and there was no good reason for it. There was no defensible reason for the lack of a program to protect workers.”