Scaffold victim identified

Painter who died in fall was musician, artist

A mural painter who died in a construction accident at a luxury beachfront condominium being built in Hollywood was an artist and musician, relatives said.

Raymond Willis Brown, 32, lived in Miami, before his fatal fall Monday at the Hyde Resort & Residences site.

Two other mural painters were hurt but were saved by their safety harnesses during a four-story plunge.

A swing stage used by the artists collapsed about 1:30 p.m. at the 41-story tower that is scheduled to accept residents in January.

Jonathan Olsen, 36, of Miami, was in good condition Tuesday in Memorial Regional Hospital. Douglas Hoekzema, 36, of Boca Raton, was evaluated for injuries at the resort at 4111 S. Ocean Drive, firefighters said.

The general contractor for the building and another project in Miami — where people nearby were injured and one died on Oct. 19 — said work has been suspended at both sites as authorities investigate.

Whether Brown was wearing a safety harness, as Olsen and Hoekzema were, is part of the investigation that Hollywood Police would not discuss Tuesday.

Police said Hoekzema is the designer for the unfinished, abstract painting that spans the resort’s south facade. Hoekzema did not return email or telephone messages.

The complex is near the border between Hallandale Beach and Hollywood. Firefighters from both cities responded to the rogue platform that made so much noise when it fell that Hallandale’s rescuers thought it

had struck their fire station, which is next door.

Hollywood’s technical rescue team rescued one of the survivors and Hallandale’s 75-foot ladder met the other who was in his harness, with his feet wedged into vents in the building wall.

It was unclear to rescuers if the scaffold malfunctioned because of problems with the wires or other mechanical difficulties, Christopher Del Campo, battalion chief for Hollywood Fire Rescue, said Monday.

An artist’s life

Brown, who did not survive the accident, attended New Jersey schools and graduated from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, his grandfather said.

“All I can tell you is he was just a beautiful young lad,” said James Woods. He and his wife, Kate Woods, are Brown’s maternal grandparents and live in Tequesta.

Brown and a cousin spent many childhood summers with the couple; his grandfather taught him to scuba dive.

“My wife and I, our hearts are ripped out,” Woods said. He expressed regret that he never got to take Brown back to Scotland, where Woods is originally from.

“He was a great musician, he played primarily the guitar,” Woods said. “He could play anything, he could have had his own music studio. He was a very, very talented musician, with rock and contemporary jazz, and did DJing, as well as make art.”

Woods said his grandson installed shows at art galleries in Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

“He was his own man,” Woods said. “I told him I admired him because he did what he loved, doing his music and art, and could pay his own way. I was so, so proud of him. I don’t think he caused anybody any trouble in his whole life.”

Brown was an only child whose survivors include his parents, Roseann Brown and Raymond A. Brown of Martinsville, N.J.

The investigation

Hollywood Fire Rescue inspectors and police are investigating the incident, as is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the city said.

Co-developers Related Group and Fortune International formed an entity for the project, called 4111 South Ocean Drive, LLC, and Vice President Eric Fordin said in an email, “Tragically, a section of scaffolding at Hyde Resort & Residences Hollywood fell yesterday afternoon.”

Calling security and safety a priority, he said, “We are deeply concerned and send heartfelt thoughts to the individuals involved and their families."

John Moriarty & Associates of Florida is general contractor for the Hyde Resort. Monday’s accident was the second fatality in six days connected to one of the company’s building projects. On Oct. 19, an equipment failure led to a cascade of debris that fell 500 feet from the Echo Brickell residential tower under construction in Miami, a spokeswoman for John Moriarty & Associates said.

On the ground near the construction zone, a man had a fatal heart attack and others were injured, according to news reports.

At the Hyde Resort & Residences, a subcontractor working on the building’s stucco and its employees installed the swing stages that were rented from a vendor, the spokeswoman for Moriarty said.

The company is working with authorities and OSHA as well as subcontractors and vendors on both its projects to pinpoint the causes of the accidents, John Leete, executive vice president of John Moriarty Associates of Florida, said in an email. He called Monday’s fatality a “heartrending incident.”

“Security and safety are paramount to us,” Leete said. “Above all, our thoughts and prayers remain with the families of the victims and their loved ones at this time.”

Work has been temporarily suspended at both job sites, the company said.