Steel beams fall, injure two workers

Two construction workers fell four stories and were pinned by steel decking material dropped from a nearby crane yesterday morning at the Biomedical Research Building construction site, University Police said yesterday. David Mullen and Blaine Lawford, subcontractors to the construction company RM Shoemaker, were both seriously injured and were taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania for emergency care. HUP Nursing Supervisor Elaine Toyer said last night that Mullen is in satisfactory condition, but Lawford is in guarded condition in the Surgery Intensive Care Unit. University Physical Plant Project Director Scott Harpman said last night that he did not know the cause or specific details of the accident. "We don't know exactly what happened," Harpman said. "It appears some decking fell, and when that fell, they fell with it. We're currently investigating and we should know more in the next couple of days." Harpman said, however, that he was having difficulty finding witnesses to the accident. "I haven't talked with anyone who saw [the accident]," he said. "It looks like the only witnesses were actually the workers who fell. Unfortunately, we can't speak with them yet." Harpman said that the construction site was closed immediately after the accident and the 10 to 20 remaining workers were sent home. He added that the site, located near the Nursing Education Building and Blockley Hall, will again be closed tomorrow so that the Occupation Health and Safety Association -- an independent inquiry organization -- can conduct an investigation of the accident scene. "We'll have gathered enough information from the scene tomorrow to start construction again [next week]," Harpman said.