Dear Sir,
I am writing in response to your request for additional
information for our claim. In block number three of the accident reporting form
I put, “trying to do the job alone,” as the cause of my accident. You said in
your letter that I should explain more fully and I trust the following details
will be sufficient.
I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident I was
working alone on the roof of a new six-story building. When I completed my work
I discovered that I had about 500 pounds of brick left over. Rather than carry
the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley
which fortunately was attached to the side of the building at the sixth
floor.
I went down to the bottom floor, tied the rope tightly to ensure
the barrel at the top was secure. Then I
proceeded back up to the top floor and filled the barrel with the 500 pounds of
bricks. I then went back down to the
first floor and very carefully untied the rope.
In block eleven of the accident reporting form you will note my weight
of 200 pounds.
Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so
suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rather
rapid rate up the side of the building.
In the vicinity of the third floor I met the barrel coming
down. This explains the fractured skull and broken collarbone.
Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not
stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep in the pulley.
Fortunately, by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to
hold tightly to the rope in spite of my pain.
At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks
hit the ground and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Devoid of the weight of the bricks the barrel
now weighed approximately 50 pounds. I
refer you again to my weight in block eleven. As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent
down the side of the building. In the vicinity of the third floor I met the
barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles and the lacerations
on my legs and lower body.
The encounter with the barrel slowed me enough to lessen my
injuries when I fell onto the pile of bricks and, fortunately, only three
vertebrae were cracked.
I am sorry to report, however that as I lay there on the
bricks—in pain, unable to stand, and watching the empty barrel six stories
above me – I again lost my presence of mind. I let go of the rope.
Moral of this tale. It doesn’t pay to try to do the job
alone. Anton A. Ewing, JD Tax
