Dive Brief:
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A passerby is injured in a New York City construction accident once a month on average, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of city Department of Buildings records.
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Most of those accidents occur in Manhattan, the newspaper reported. Many involve falling or flying objects, like bricks, hammers, glass and construction barriers.
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More injuries involving non-construction workers occurred in 2014 than during any other year since the department began keeping track of them in 2008. Last year, 22 bystanders were hurt in 18 construction accidents.
Dive Insight:
Construction experts told The Journal that "lax or inexperienced contractors" and novice workers without proper training often make mistakes that can cause these dangerous incidents.
The death of a pedestrian killed by a flying piece of a construction fence in Greenwich Village last month has drawn attention to the dangers construction in the city poses to bystanders.
Earlier this year, the city amended its construction code to require that fencing around job sites be able to withstand 98-mph winds, or 80-mph gusts if the company could convince code officials the higher standard was unnecessary in a specific area.
Despite this high number of pedestrian fatalities, construction workers have a much higher risk of injury on or near work sites. According to The Journal, 231 construction accidents were reported in New York last year—the highest number since the city started tracking the accidents in 2007. In those 231 accidents, 237 workers were injured, and eight were killed.