Form for wall falls at UA dormitory site, hurts worker

2nd accident at project in a week

A construction worker at a job site on the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville campus was transported to a local hospital Thursday morning after a section of support wall in an excavated area fell on him, university police said.

The worker’s injuries didn’t immediately appear to be life-threatening, police spokesman Lt. Gary Crain said Thursday afternoon.

Danny Bennett, vice president for the project’s general contractor, Clark Contractors LLC of Little Rock, said Thursday evening that the man was released from the hospital.

“So he’s at home right now,” said Bennett, who declined to release the employee’s name. “And we’re thankful that he’s OK.”

Officers were called at 11:15 a.m. to the accident site at the Founders Hall dormitory construction project at Dickson Street and McIlroy Avenue, Crain said.

The worker was pulled from the excavated site and loaded into an ambulance by 11:36 a.m.

University officials said they had few details by early afternoon. For instance, they had not yet learned the man’s identity, nor whether he was an employee of Clark Contractors or worked for a subcontractor.

“Construction work is an inherently dangerous activity,” said Mike Johnson, the university’s associate vice chancellor for facilities, adding that the contractor has a good safety record.

The company has had no federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration

1 violations in its 3 ⁄ 2- year history, Bennett said.

“We are concerned with our people,” he said.

A form for a basement wall fell and struck the man, Bennett said, adding that the wood-and-metal piece used to form concrete was positioned likely no taller than 10 feet off the ground.

“It did knock him to the ground, but it did not pin him to the ground,” he said, adding that an accident report said the man was struck on the shoulder and possibly the head/neck area.

It was the site’s second accident in less than a week. Construction workers cut an underground high-voltage line Monday morning, with no resulting injuries, but the accident temporarily cut power to about 30 campus buildings and disrupted some classes.

“I’m surprised and concerned,” Johnson said. “Any accident, whether it’s injury or noninjury, concerns us.”

Crain said that after the injured man was transported to Washington Regional Medical Center in Fayetteville, a worker standing next to him when the accident happened said his shoulders were hurting. But after emergency responders arrived and evaluated him, the second man declined to be taken to the hospital.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration always investigates work-site-related injuries at the university, Crain said.