Amazon Urged to Review Emergency Plans in Wake of Deadly Tornado
June 20, 2022 —
Spencer Soper - BloombergAmazon.com Inc. should better prepare workers for extreme weather events, according to federal regulators who investigated a deadly tornado strike on a company warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois.
The storm ripped through the facility in December, killing six workers and injuring several others, prompting the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to launch a probe. At the time, Amazon said the facility complied with all construction regulations and that proper safety procedures were followed when the tornado struck. But several workers told Bloomberg that training for such events was minimal and mostly entailed pointing out emergency exits and assembly points.
An OSHA report released on Tuesday echoed those concerns. The agency said a bullhorn that was supposed to be used to tell workers to take cover was locked up in a cage and inaccessible. In interviews with investigators, some employees couldn’t recall ever participating in emergency drills and said they mistakenly took shelter in a bathroom on the south side of the building rather than in designated restrooms on the north side.
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Spencer Soper, Bloomberg
PATH Station Designed by Architect Known for Beautiful Structures, Defects, and Cost Overruns
October 01, 2013 —
CDJ STAFFThe new PATH station at the World Trade Center site in New York is six years behind schedule and its cost has doubled to $4 billion dollars. But maybe New Yorkers shouldn’t be surprised. The New York Times reports that the Port Authority, which operates the PATH trains between New York and New Jersey, hired Santiago Calatrava, an architect whose work has frequently lead to cost overruns and claims of defects.
The problems in lower Manhattan are not all Mr. Calatrava’s fault. Auditors described the Port Authority as “a challenged and dysfunctional organization.” (A separate report in the New York Times notes that a former PATH executive may have walked away with the rights to the words “World Trade Center” for $10. The company he subsequently founded, The World Trade Center Association, charges millions for the use of the name.)
One problem with Mr. Calatrava’s design for the station is that he insisted that all the mechanical elements of the station be located in other buildings. Further, the Port Authority might want to examine those plans carefully. In the design for a museum in Valencia, Spain, Mr. Calatrava forgot to provide for handicap access or fire escapes. That project, according to the Times tripled in cost as it was built.
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Construction Defects not Creating Problems for Bay Bridge
July 31, 2013 —
CDJ STAFFThere might have been a number of problems with San Francisco’s new Bay Bridge, but despite all that, the Contra-Costa Times says that the experts say that there is no reason for panic. And although the chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, Mark DeSaulnier, has been a critic of the bridge, he says that he is “convinced the old bridge is unsafe.”
Although DeSaulnier wants an independent review, construction of the bridge has been investigated by what the Times refers to as “dozens of internationally renowned bridge engineers and other experts.” According to the experts, the problems with the bridge fall in to three categories, ranging from the fixable, through the fixed, to those that were never actual problems.
Of the last category, the Oakland Tribune reported in 2005 that construction workers claimed they were told to “conceal shoddy welds to speed up construction,” but the Federal Highway Administration outside experts found no evidence of bad welds. In another case, bad welds were discovered at the factory where a span was being constructed. The process was changed and the bad welds repaired.
Caltrans has delayed the opening of the Bay Bridge to December 10. Earlier plans were to open the bridge in September.
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Why Should Businesses Seek Legal Help Early On?
December 03, 2024 —
Scott L. Baker - Los Angeles Litigation BlogMost business owners are natural problem solvers. They assess the issue that lies before them and develop a strategy to overcome it. It’s a critical mindset to have, but do all business owners have the skillset to solve every issue?
While it is understandable that business owners may want to attempt to resolve issues on their own, it is invariably beneficial to obtain guidance for legal issues earlier rather than later.
3 Reasons to Consult an Attorney Sooner than Later
Many people might consider working with an attorney to be a last resort. Typically, this is not the case; rather, getting knowledgeable legal counsel sooner than later can help business owners because:
- It’s Cheaper: Early legal intervention can often prevent disputes from leading to litigation, which can be expensive. Working with an attorney to resolve a conflict before it escalates into a larger issue is often a good business decision and wise investment.
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Scott L. Baker, Baker & AssociatesMr. Baker may be contacted at
slb@bakerslaw.com
Kansas City Airport Terminal Project Faces Delays, Rising Costs
February 06, 2019 —
Kansas City Star - Engineering News-RecordCosts have long since blown past initial estimates, prompting an independent review of the price tag. Its opening is eight months behind schedule and mounting delays drew heated questions from local officials last year.
Sounds like the continuing saga of Kansas City's planned airport terminal, overwhelmingly approved by voters in November 2017 . It's actually about the new international arrivals facility under construction at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport , or Sea-Tac.
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Engineering News-RecordENR may be contacted at
ENR.com@bnpmedia.com
Vaccine Mandate Confusion Continues – CMS Vaccine Mandate Restored in Some (But Not All) US States
January 03, 2022 —
David S. Harvey, Jr. & Sarah Hock - Lewis BrisboisTampa, Fla. (December 16, 2021) - As has been widely publicized, the Biden Administration has attempted to impose various forms of vaccine mandates under a variety laws and programs. At the same time, we have seen a flurry of opposition to these efforts ranging from new state laws (for example, in Florida) to court challenges seeking to enjoin the effort.
One of the federal mandates was issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and is applicable to staff at Medicare- and Medicaid-certified healthcare providers. Initially, fourteen states sued in opposition to the CMS mandate and were able to obtain a nationwide injunction issued by a federal district judge in Louisiana. That injunction was appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which has now issued a decision that awards points to both sides.
The Fifth Circuit ruled the injunction only applies to the 14 states that participated in the Louisiana lawsuit and not nationwide. Those states are Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, and West Virginia. This opinion has the potential to revive the CMS vaccine mandate in just over half of U.S. states. We can anticipate new suits will be filed as to other states, with the outcome still uncertain. It is unknown at this point whether the United States Supreme Court will agree to review the issues when such review is sought in the near future.
Reprinted courtesy of
David S. Harvey, Jr., Lewis Brisbois and
Sarah Hock, Lewis Brisbois
Mr. Harvey may be contacted at David.Harvey@lewisbrisbois.com
Ms. Hock may be contacted at Sarah.Hock@lewisbrisbois.com
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South Carolina Legislature Redefining Occurrences to Include Construction Defects in CGL Policies
April 01, 2011 —
Beverley BevenFlorez CDJ STAFFThe question of what circumstances must be in place for construction defects to be covered in a general commercial liability (CGL) policies is being raised by the courts and the legislature in South Carolina. The Insurance Journal reports that the American Insurance Association as well as the Property and Casualty Insurers Association of America are speaking out on the issue.
The problem seems to be centered on what defines an “occurrence.” CGL policies were not meant to cover faulty workmanship, according to the filing by the South Carolina Supreme Court. In January of this year, the South Carolina Supreme Court reversed the ruling in Crossmann Communities v Harleysville Mutual declaring that “Respondents cannot show the damage here was the result of an occurrence. Rather, the damage was a direct result and the natural and expected consequence of faulty workmanship; faulty workmanship did not cause an occurrence resulting in damage.” They focused their attention on the word “accident,” stating that there is a fortuity element that is not diminished.
The South Carolina legislature reacted by producing a bill that would add new language directly negating the ruling by the Supreme Court. The South Carolina bill S-431 would change the definition of an occurrence in regards to construction defects as follows: “For a liability insurance policy issued to a construction professional, an ‘occurrence’ means, at a minimum: (1) an accident; or (2) continuous or repeated exposure to substantially the same general harmful condition or substance. No additional requirement of a fortuitous event is needed to constitute an ‘occurrence.’”
S-431 is currently residing in the House Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry.
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Grenfell Fire Probe Faults Construction Industry Practices
November 28, 2022 —
Peter Reina - Engineering News-Record"Incompetence and poor practices in the construction industry" and among others led to the June 2017 fire at London's Grenfell residential high-rise building, causing 72 deaths, according to the lead counsel for the public inquiry that ended Nov. 10.
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Peter Reina, Engineering News-Record
Mr. Reina may be contacted at reina@btinternet.com
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