Hazardous jobs and 2 window cleaners dangle at One World Trade Centre

One World Trade Center  presently refers to the main building of the new World Trade Center complex in Manhattan, New York, also the tallest skyscraper in the United States of America. The 104-storey supertall structure shares a numeric name with the northern Twin Tower in the original World Trade Center that was destroyed in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.  In 2009, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey confirmed that the building would be known by its legal name "One World Trade Center" rather than the colloquial "Freedom Tower".

Many experts sitting in Office  before computers would claim that ‘they are in the firing line’ all time. Sitting for long hours could harm cardiovascular and skeletal systems and also could be very boring- but that is not considered a hazardous job as that of a stuntmen, para jumpers and others.  There are others like Postman, Courier, food and other items deliverers – who are exposed to more risks.   There are people who deal with dangerous animals on a daily basis – not necessarily those who put their head into the mouth of Lion or Crocodile but also occupations like fishermen. A friend of mine, did odd jobs of painting, tinkering and welding and once doing a welding job inside a tanker (truck)- the tanker body itself was thrown meters away due to explosion of residual gases.

There are jobs which Indian casual workers undertake without any proper safety gadgets while in advanced countries, they will be well-supported by technology.  An example is painting/ repair / plumbing  work in tall buildings ~ also window cleaning – the washing of architectural glass used for structural, lighting, or decorative purposes. Here there seems to be no regulation as one can see workers dangling on ropes and hastily made structures using lot of used items.

US News agencies report the travails of two window washers rescued rom dangling scaffold in One World Centre.  A scaffold malfunction trapped the pair, identified as Juan Lizama, 41, and Juan Lopez, 33, of the Bronx, outside the 68th floor of 1 World Trade Center, with the dangling duo stuck amid the skyline until FDNY rescuers plucked them from midair. Reports state that for  90 nerve-wracking minutes, two veteran window washers shared a Lower Manhattan view both breathtaking and terrifying. An investigation is under way into a scaffold collapse that left them dangling near the 68th floor of the skyscraper.  The scaffold is reported to have been supplied by the Tractel Group, a distributor of such platforms and other industry products that has been involved in two similar incidents in recent years, one in which a worker died.  On that eventful day,  the men clung to the teetering rig, secured by four cables, for nearly two hours while rescue workers raced to bring them to safety. The workers tied the ropes to their harnesses so they would not plummet to the ground if the scaffold collapsed.

One of the men reportedly called his wife during the ordeal and begged her to “take care of the children”. “Please don’t feel bad,” Lizama’s wife recalled her husband telling her, the New York Post reported. Lizama is  father of three children, the youngest is just 10 months old.  The New York fire department used a diamond saw to cut through the thick layers of glass, the preferred rescue plan, fire commissioner said. Firefighters also lowered a second basket as a back-up plan, in case they were stymied in sawing open the glass.  Hours later, the firefighters broke through the glass and were able to pull the men safety through the roughly 4-by-8ft hole they carved in the window. Uninjured, Lizama and Lopez were taken to a local hospital where they were treated for mild hypothermia and released. Nigro said one of the cables developed slack, which caused the platform to suddenly tilt from “horizontal to nearly vertical”. The cause of the accident has yet to be determined.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the tower, said it had suspended maintenance while the investigation proceeds. Sure the firefighters did a commendable job unfaced by the 1776 feet height. One World Trade Center opened to the public for the first time in Nov 14,  when the first tenants moved in, 13 years after tragedy struck NYC. About 3,400 employees will take up office space from the 20th to 44th floors of the $3.9 billion skyscraper the coming months, while the remainder of the building’s 104 stories will be filled subsequently.   Many sites would insist on insurance coverage  [Workmen compensation policy as also personal accident policies] for workers involved in such operations.

Here is a scene nearer OMR of workers doing a similar work ....... and that speaks volumes

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

20^th Nov 2014.