Tucker, GA — Georgia Bridge and Concrete of Tucker was one of two companies cited for failing to follow safety standards, leading to the death of a construction worker.

A federal workplace safety investigation determined that following the safety standards could have prevented a bridge collapse that killed a 33-year-old worker while working on a demolition project in Covington on Oct. 19, 2021.

The employee was unnamed. The company did not return a message seeking comment for this story.

According to a report by the U.S. Department of Labor, B&D Concrete Cutting Inc. of Atlanta and Georgia Bridge and Concrete LLC of Tucker did not conduct a proper engineering survey.

“As an access road bridge over the Yellow River was being dismantled, an over stressed section of the bridge collapsed and fell into the river. During the collapse, a concrete saw weighing more than 1,700 pounds struck and fatally injured the worker employed by B&D Concrete Cutting. A second B&D worker suffered injuries and was hospitalized,” a press release said.

U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigators cited B&D Concrete Cutting Inc. and Georgia Bridge and Concrete LLC – the project’s prime contractor – for not ensuring a competent person had performed an engineering survey before allowing workers to begin the dismantling project. Additionally, company personnel did not ensure procedures were in place to prevent structural members from being over stressed during dismantling operations. This failure exposed employees to fall and struck-by hazards, the press release said.

“If the employers had conducted a proper survey on this highly technical project as required, the tragic loss of one worker and serious injuries to another may not have happened,” said OSHA Area Office Director Joshua Turner in Atlanta-East. “Established safety standards exist to ensure workers get home safely and don’t leave families, friends and communities to grieve a preventable fatality.”

OSHA also cited Georgia Bridge and Concrete for failing to keep a fire extinguisher within 75 feet of two equipment refueling stations. The agency proposed penalties of $31,283 for Georgia Bridge and Concrete and $25,669 for B&D Concrete Cutting.

Georgia Bridge and Concrete LLC, formerly Sunbelt Structures Inc., is located on N. Royal Drive in Tucker.  The company specializes in bridge and heavy civil construction.

The Tucker Observer is a new community news website owned by Decaturish.com. We provide locally sourced news about Tucker, Clarkston and Stone Mountain.

For more Tucker news, follow us on Facebook by clicking here. Follow us on Twitter by clicking here. 

Want the latest news from the Tucker Observer delivered to your inbox every morning? Click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.