Construction Accident in West Palm Beach – One Injured

June 15, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                           

Contact:  Diane G. Papadakos, Director of Communications
City of West Palm Beach – Mayor’s Office
dpapadakos@wpb.org
(561) 822-1411 (TTY: 800-955-8771)

Construction Accident in West Palm Beach – One Injured

West Palm Beach, FL – West Palm Beach Firefighters responded to a construction accident on the 18^th floor of a high-rise building under construction on Clearwater Drive at the 300 Block of South Australian Avenue. The patient is a 65-year-old male construction worker who sustained moderate injuries from a partial collapse of a deck.

Firefighters took the construction elevator to the 14^th floor and then climbed to the 18^th floor roof deck. They provided medical treatment for the patient’s injuries and then loaded him into a stokes basket, where he was secured with ropes and harnesses. The basket was then attached to the crane’s hooks. The crane operator and safety officer from the construction team coordinated with rescuers in lowering the patient to the ground using the crane. A firefighter called an “attendant” was also fastened to the basket and was lowered down alongside the patient. Once safely on the ground, the patient was transported to St. Mary’s for further treatment.

The firefighters who performed this rescue are highly trained Technical Rescue Technicians who practice regularly for these high-risk, low-frequency events. Most firefighters only get to participate in a few of these emergencies in an entire 30-year career. This crew did an excellent job today and performed at expert level.

Incident #WPB-23-014245

Address: 350 S. Australian Avenue, West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Personnel: 28

Apparatus/ Veh: 13

Please contact the Mayor’s Office of Communications should you have questions.  

Construction accident extraction

Accident victim safely extracted.