The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that in 2012, on average, almost 100 workers died every week on American construction sites – more than a dozen deaths every day. This number is actually lower than in past years, and yet it is still far too high.
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Part of Capitol Closed to Public Due to Potential Asbestos Issue
Prior to 1980, asbestos was regularly used as insulation in buildings. Many other building products also contained asbestos, including fireproofing products, spackling compounds, tiles, roofing materials, ductwork and elevator equipment. Research has definitively proven that exposure to asbestos causes serious health conditions, including lung cancer and mesothelioma. Even the United States Capitol buildings were not exempt...
Read MoreBicyclist on Pedestrian Bridge Struck by Out-of-Place Vehicle
Imagine you are on your bicycle, out for a relaxing ride through neighborhoods and parks. The sun is shining, birds are singing, children are playing on the nearby grass. Casually, you ride up on to the pedestrian bridge that arcs over the river, greeting strolling families and other cyclists as you pass them. Below...
Read MoreTwo Women Die in VA Drunk Driving Accident
Sometimes one wonders what it will take to finally get people to stop driving drunk. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that almost 30 people in America die every day in crashes involving an alcohol-impaired driver. This is roughly equivalent to one death every hour. Yet people still insist on getting behind the wheel after...
Read MoreWho Is Responsible for Keeping Construction Workers Safe?
Construction sites are naturally dangerous. Safety regulations are in place for a reason, but time and again, we hear of accidents that could have been prevented, if only these guidelines were more closely followed. Last month, a construction worker in Falls Church was working in a trench, replacing a water line, when the trench collapsed,...
Read MorePharmaceutical Company Settles Allegations Involving Improper Financial Incentives for $124 Million
Cincinnati-based Omnicare Inc. will pay $124 million in fines to settle allegations the nursing home pharmacy giant made false billings to federal health programs and offered improper discounts to skilled-nursing facilities. Omnicare allegedly offered contracts to supply prescription medication and other pharmaceuticals to Medicare and Medicaid aligned skilled-nursing facilities well below cost. This would in turn induce...
Read MoreWoman Dies after Being Hit by Vehicle at D.C. Intersection
Yet another pedestrian has been killed in Washington D.C., this time a 58-year-old woman was hit by a commuter bus on K Street. She had just left work for the day and was running to catch her commuter bus, when she tripped and fell, and was struck by another bus. She was rushed to a...
Read MoreParalyzed Patients Walk Again with Help from ‘Bionic’ Suit
A 26-year-old man was in an ATV accident two years ago that left him with a severed spinal cord. Surgeons assumed he would never walk again. A special ‘bionic’ suit, however, is changing the game; he is now able to push his hips and legs forward using a motorized body suit called “ReWalk.” The system...
Read MoreDistracted Driving Often Leads to Crashes
More than 3,000 people died in distraction-related crashes in 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. “Distraction” is a broad term, used to mean any number of activities that might happen in a car: eating a hamburger, chatting with passengers, touching up lipstick, reading a navigation...
Read MoreRising Truck Accident Fatalities Lead to New Scrutiny
According to a report in the New Jersey Star-Ledger, the Walmart truck that flipped Tracy Morgan’s limo recently was ultramodern in its technology. The high-tech cab was fitted with sophisticated collision-avoidance systems, forward-looking radar and interactive cruise control, plus an on-board computer, blind spot sensors and electronic controls limiting its speed to 65 mph. Most...
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