7th Death of 2010

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Minnesota man dies while building ISP tower
 August 23, 2010 - A Braham, Minn. tower technician was killed Saturday when the lift truck he was on tipped over while he was installing a communications tower for an internet service provider.

The Isanti County Sheriff's Office said that Mark Robert Anderson, 40, was assisting in the erection of a tower for Genesis Wireless at 3389 Helium St. NW in Wyanett Township when the Lull Telehandler - with the boom fully extended approximately 40 feet - fell over.

Anderson  was transported to Cambridge Medical Center where he was pronounced dead of injuries he received in the fall.

Jay Richard Mankie, 47, of Braham, and owner and founder of Genesis Wireless, was operating the unit and suffered non life-threatening injuries.

Founded in Braham, Minn. in 1999, Genesis says it has a network of over 40 towers to offer their high speed wireless internet in East Central Minnesota.

"The accident was work related and that is why OSHA was called," said Isanti County Chief Deputy Bill Guenther.

"They will be doing an investigation to determine what happened. I can't speculate as to why the Telehandler tipped over and I believe that OSHA will determine that when they complete their investigation."

Assisting at the scene was Dalbo Fire and Rescue, Isanti County Fire and Rescue and Allina Ambulance.

A Funeral Service for Anderson will be held on Thursday, Aug. 26 at 2 p.m. at Stanchfield Baptist Church. A time of visitation will be from noon to 2 p.m. at the church. Arrangements are with the Rock Ingebrand Funeral Home of Braham.

5th and 6th Deaths of 2010

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Two Alabama men die after guy wire is clipped
 Update: August 3, 2010 - A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed in east Alabama by the family of a man who died after a radio tower collapsed. The incident happened last Thursday in Fort McClellan.
 
A truck hit the tower causing it to fall while the tower technicians were at the 40-foot level.
  
The family of Barry Sloan has filed a lawsuit against the driver of the truck and the truck’s owner, Barnhart Crane and Rigging Company Incorporated.

Barnhart has over 20 branches across the U.S. and is frequently used by the industry to install and maintain communications structures.

Attorney Chris Glover said a bucket truck was parked close to the tower’s guy wires.
“The men had finished their work and everyone was clearing out,” Glover said.

“Stephens was in the process of moving the truck. He did not manage the space around the vehicle well and became entangled in the support wire.”

According to Glover, the tower then began to fall, but Stephens probably didn’t realize it until the tower was already down.

“At the very least, they should have paid more attention to their surroundings,” he said. “At the very least you sit still until the men get down. You have to be aware of your surroundings when you’re driving any vehicle.”
Barnhart Crane and Rigging Company said in a statement, “The radio tower collapse at the Fort McClellan Industrial Park is a great tragedy. Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathies go out to the families involved. Barnhart is cooperating fully with all authorities in investigating the accident to determine the cause.”

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July 22, 2010 - Two tower technicians died after the Anniston, Alabama guyed tower they were working on Thursday was accidentally knocked down.

Calhoun County Coroner Pat Brown pronounced Barry Sloan, 37, of Albertville dead at the scene at 4:16 p.m. His co-worker, Jonce Hubble, 41, of Albertville died in surgery at UAB Hospital around 9 p.m.

Both victims were employees of Anniston-based McCord Communications and were working on a tower off of Alps Drive in McClellan.

Brown said according to preliminary estimates, the two victims fell about 40 feet.

Both the police department and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the incident.

Brown said he could not release the exact cause of the accident, but noted the incident involved a vehicle.

The two tower technicians were on the tower and there was a truck which hit a guy-wire, which caused the tower to fall, Brown said.

“There were several people around working on the scene,” Brown said. “Both men received assistance right away.”

An OSHA spokesperson said he would not identify whether the truck belonged to McCord Communications, stating that there will be no comment until the agency's final report is complete and ready to be made public.

Sloan and Hubble were the fifth and sixth tower technicians to die this year after falling from a structure. In 2009 five workers were killed.

The guyed tower, just shy of 200 feet, is not registered with the FCC. It is located about a mile east of Highway 21 in Fort McClellan on property leased to the Alabama National Guard . It is part of a system that provides communication to personnel at Pelham Range through the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program.

Following the U.S. Army base's closure in 1999, the property was turned over to the City of Anniston for economic redevelopment and McClellan has become home to over 900 residents and a work place for more than 3,000 employees.

Established in 1947, McCord Communications specializes in two-way, mass notification and broadband systems design and installation. Their main office is in Anniston with service centers in Gadsen  and Albertville.

4th Death of 2010

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

New Jersey man dies in West Philadelphia accident

June 28, 2010 - Stanley J. Zarzecki, Sr. passed away Thursday evening after falling from a rooftop in West Philadelphia.

He is survived by his wife Cara (nee Voll),  two sons Stanley J., Jr. and Zachery Xaiver; his mother Diane of Phila. and a brother Eric of Phila.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
UPDATED: July 12, 2010 - An industry manager knowledgeable of the accident, stated that the initial police report indicating that Zarzecki tripped on gravel and fell off the roof was incorrect.
He stated that Zarzecki fell off of the Sprint/Nextel equipment platform and over the side of the short parapet wall.
In addition, although construction drawings do not show a railing around the 11-foot by 22-foot platform, there was a railing around it when he fell, he said.

UPDATED June 28, 2010 - A technician working on the roof at the Walnut Park Plaza in West Philadelphia fell 120 feet to his death Thursday evening.

Philadelphia police say Champion Communications employee Stanley Zarzecki, 32, of Deptford, N.J. was working on transmission lines on the roof of a nine-story building at 6250 Walnut Street at about 9 p.m. when he reportedly slipped on the gravel roof.

Authorities say Zarzecki hit the edge of the roof and fell to his death.

He was pronounced dead at about 10:15 p.m.

Zarecki was reportedly working on a Clearwire project.

Clearwire, which is majority owned by Sprint/Nextel, oftentimes colocates their equipment on existing Sprint sites.

Sprint/Nextel has an 11-foot by 22-foot equipment platform on the Walnut Park Plaza rooftop approximately three feet from the parapet wall which is one-foot or less in height. It reportedly does not have any guardrails.

Other wireless tenants on the rooftop include AT&T and T-Mobile.

Authorities have not released where Zarzecki was working when he fell.

According to OSHA Standard 1926.501(b)(1) regarding unprotected sides and edges, "Each employee on a walking/working surface (horizontal and vertical surface) with an unprotected side or edge which is 6 feet or more above a lower level shall be protected from falling by the use of guardrail systems, safety net systems, or personal fall arrest systems."

After learning of the accident a number of companies held a conference call with their project managers to emphasize the need to be vigilant in their josbsite safety compliance.

Owned by Robert Kelhower, Champion Communications LLC is located in Westville, N.J.

3rd Death of 2010

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Teen worker succumbs following fall from Arkansas self-supporting tower
 Updated: June 1, 2010 - Services have been announced for Ethan Wayne Ray Hutchinson, age 18, of Ava, Mo, who passed away Friday in Ark. after he fell from a communications tower.

"Little Britches" was born in Springfield on June 22, 1991 to Ralph Mason and Melissa Deanna (Adams) Hutchinson.

He leaves behind his parents and a brother, Nathan Everett and wife Erica (Strong); a sister Deanna Jean Porter and husband Clinton; his grandparents, Larry and Wanda Hutchinson, and Garland and Barbara Combs; a great-grandmother, Faye Maggard; nephews, aunts and uncles; cousins; and many friends.

Ethan was an active member of Eastern Gate Missionary Baptist Church. He loved life, his friends and family.  His favorite hobbies were hunting, fishing, working on automobiles and teasing others.

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May 30, 2010 - The Baxter County Sheriff's office says an 18-year-old Missouri man has died after falling from a cell phone tower he was working on in Mountain Home, Ark.

Baxter County Sheriff John Montgomery says his department responded to a call at 6:05 p.m. Friday of a job site-related accident at the intersection of State Highway 5 and the US 62/412 Bypass.

Ethan Wayne Hutchinson of Douglas County, Mo., was pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities said a six-person crew from Dallas-based TECHSICO Enterprise Solutions was finishing work on the tower when Hutchinson fell about 200 feet, dying upon impact.

The 250-foot self supporting tower was built in 2001. TECHSICO was reportedly doing an upgrade on the Brunson Lane AT&T-owned tower.

The Ava resident's body was sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab for an autopsy.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating.

Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Tulsa, Okla., TECHSICO specializes in furnishing low voltage systems. Although the company's website does not identify that it provides installation, retrofitting or maintenance of communications structures, it does state that it provides staff placement services.

Wreath photo courtesy: Blake Bowers

2nd Death of 2010

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Tech dies following fall from 400-foot guyed tower

UPDATE: May 7, 2010 - Services have been announced for tower technician Joseph L. White "Kojak", of Hawthorne, Fla. who passed away May 4. He was born in Gainesville.

May 4, 2010 - An Alachua County, Fla. man died this morning when he fell from a guyed tower in Dixie County.

The 36-year-old tower technician and a co-worker, employed by North Florida Tower Service out of Lake City, were about 240 feet up the 400-foot tower when the accident occurred, the Dixie County Sheriff's Office reported.

Officers have not released the man's name pending notification of his family.

The man had been with the business for about two years and had several years of experience in this line of work, according to the Sheriff's Office.

The tower, located near County Road 357N, is owned by Tri-County Electric of Madison. The accident occurred about 9 a.m.

Employees were at the tower to perform work for the Foley Timber Co. of Perry and the State of Florida Division of Forestry, the Sheriff's Office reported.

An autopsy will be performed, and an investigation into the accident was ongoing, according to deputies.

North Florida Tower Service has been in business for over 20 years and is owned by Don Suhl.

1st Death in 2010

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com


Mississippi man succumbs after 100-foot fall while dismantling
 
February 3, 2010 - A veteran tower climber died today after falling 100 feet from a cell tower he was working on along Arkansas 88 in Saline County, Ark., a sheriff’s office spokesman said.

Terry Thompson, 51, of Lucedale was pronounced dead at the scene, Lt. Mike Frost, with the sheriff’s department said.

He stated that the tower was owned by American Tower Corporation.

Thompson was a sub-contractor with Dynamic Wireless of Little Rock, a company hired to remove the 250-foot self supporting tower.

Frost said the sheriff’s office is investigating the death and OSHA has been contacted.

The 10:30 a.m. accident was this year's first tower climber fatality
Authorities say Thompson had 37 years of experience working on towers.

Initial reports indicate that Thomson may have been attached with only a positioning lanyard.

Just prior to Thomson falling, the gin pole reportedly lurched about two-to-three feet.

OSHA will be looking to identify if it was the gate or other equipment that failed.

Thomson reportedly fell inside the tower and hit some bracing on his way down.

Dynamic Wireless, LLC, an affiliate of TransportWave, was founded in 2004.

The tower erection and maintenance company is managed by Todd Lewellen.

Dynamic Wireless is licensed as a general contractor in several states.

5th Death of 2009

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

One dead following New York tower collapse 

UPDATE: December 15, 2009 - The Schuyler County Sheriff's Office has released the name of the tower erector who died when WRCE's 396-foot tower collapsed yesterday while a five-man tower crew was replacing guy wires in the town of Dix, NY.

Authorities say 46-year-old Dirk Remington of Clyde was attached to the tower while working on the guy wires at approximately 50-feet above ground level when the tower buckled and crashed to the ground. His four co-workers were not injured.
The tower crew was employed by Demand Communications Inc. of Owego.

On their web site, DCI says that all of their tower hands are certified by a leading national provider of climber training. They also state that they employ crew members that are certified in CPR and hazard communications.

DCI also conducts its own communications climbing program at a tower facility at their corporate headquarters.

The WRCE-AM tower, built in 1968, is owned by Backyard Broadcasting Elmira Licensee LLC, of Jacksonville, FL, according to FCC registration records. FCC records also indicate that at the identical latitude and longitude a 396-foot pole was constructed in 1975 and is owned by Northeastern Broadcasting, Inc. of Endicott, NY. Backyard Broadcasting is the parent company or WRCE-AM.

TIA 1019 to focus upon slippageSchuyler County Sheriff's investigator Sergeant Matt Maloney told WirelessEstimator.com that the crew was in the process of changing out a guy wire when the accident occurred, and the tower appeared to have buckled at the point where Remington was working.

It will not be known why the accident occurred until a complete investigation is performed by OSHA.
However, guy wire slippage is a too frequent industry occurence and the concern is being addressed in the new construction standard, TIA 1019, expected to be released in Q4 of 2010.

Many times during construction, guys are pulled out and temporarily connected until they can be adequately secured in their final connection devices, sometimes with unfortunate results.

Sometimes connections that can slip must be used for efficient construction methods. In the event this is the case, guidelines are provided in the Standard for the following:

-- Methods to analyze the structure for a slippage event including impact factors to apply for either continuous slippage or instantaneous release are provided;

-- In the event a structure cannot safely handle the potential of guy slippage or other unequal structure forces guidelines on how and where to provide temporary backup guys is fully covered;

-- Annex E of the Standard, entitled "Wire Rope End Connections," will provide specific data on connections typically used in our industry that have been known slip as well as non-slip type connections. Acceptable methods of end termination of connections are covered;

-- An option to the use of temporary guy lines is given by adding in a backup system if slippage, that can be detrimental to the tower, can occur during a construction procedure.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
December 14, 2009 - A tower technician died today after the tower he was tied off on collapsed in Schuyler County, NY.

Schuyler County Sheriff Bill Yessman said that there was a crew of five working on a guyed tower off County Route 16.

The sheriff's office got the call around 2:45 p.m., and at this point, details are limited.

WirelessEstimator.com will follow the tragedy of this year's fifth tower climber fatality.

One worker was tied off on the tower some distance up and the 396-foot-tall tower collapsed which resulted in a fatality at the scene, Yessman said.

The worker might have been in the process of changing out or performing maintenance on a guy wire at approximately the 60-foot level, authorities said.

Yessman says the first emergency unit responded within minutes, but there was nothing they could do. The Schuyler Hospital is less than a mile away from the broadcast tower site.
The tower was located about 100 yards off CR 16. The investigation is underway.  Officials are withholding the victim's name until the family is notified.
Sheriff's investigators will return to the scene tomorrow morning along with representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The Montour Falls Fire Department, Schuyler County Volunteer Ambulance, Watkins Glen Fire Department and Schuyler County Emergency Management Office assisted at the scene.

The tower broadcasts the news/talk station WRCE-AM's 400-watt signal. According to FCC records, the structure is owned by Northeastern Broadcasting Inc. of Endicott, NY.

The details of the accident are not known, but the industry will be looking into whether ambitious project completion dates are to blame.

NATE cautions companies about unrealistic deadlinesJim Coleman, Chairman of the National Association of Tower Erectors, recently said that demands are again being made to push crews to complete work, even if the pace requires a blind eye be turned to safety.
"At some point, this mode of operation will lead to tragedy. If you are involved in this industry, you know this to be true," Coleman said.
"The holiday season and the end of the year always seem to result in the imposition of unrealistic deadlines. They pose great potential for accidents for our employees. We must be diligent in enforcing safety practices and policies."
"Please take the needed steps to ensure that each of your employees understand that their safety must come first in all aspects of their job, and advise your customers that you will not endanger your crew for any reason, including being pressured to meet unrealistic deadlines," Coleman cautioned.

This year's total of five fatalities is the lowest since 2003 when WirelessEstimator.com began monitoring deaths within the industry.

4th Death of 2009

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Oklahoma tower technician falls to death in Missouri

September 14, 2009 - An Okla. tower technician died this morning when he reportedly fell from the top of a 325-foot guyed tower in Oregon County, Mo. as he was transitioning without being tied off.
Oregon County Deputy Coroner Robert Clary said that Justin Stamps, 26, of Wagoner fell from the structure and died immediately from blunt force trauma.

Stamps was employed by S&S Communication Specialists Inc. The Hurlbert, Okla. tower erector recently completed installation of the U.S. Cellular structure located about two miles west of the junction of US Hwy. 160 and Hwy. 99 at Thomasville.

The Rover Volunteer Fire Department provided an immediate response to the tower site, and was preparing for a helicopter lift (audio), but Clary pronounced Stamps dead at the scene at 9:06 a.m.

Reports indicate that the experienced rigger was not attached to a safe anchorage point when he fell. OSHA is investigating.

S&S Communications is owned by brothers Kenneth and Randall Shankle who have 55 years of experience between them. The company is one of U.S. Cellular's primary contractors.

Kenneth Shankle said that Stamps had been with his company for less than a year, but had experience with a number of companies prior to his employment. He said that until such time that OSHA has completed their investigation he would not want to speculate as to how the accident occurred.

Stamps is the fourth fatality this year of a tower technician falling from an elevated structure.

Stamps was “moving up” on the tower when he fell more than 300 feet to his death, his mother, Tina Stamps.

“They were finished where they were working and getting ready to move up the tower,” Stamps said she was told by an S&S Communications Specialist official. “He went to hook up, and he missed.”

Besides his job, Stamps loved bull riding and anything western, but most of all he loved people, his friends and family said.

That love of people was evidenced today as dozens of cars and pickups lined the long driveway to the home of his parents, Randy and Tina Stamps. Another dozen cars that couldn’t get into the driveway lined the county road in front of the house, according to the Muscogee Phoenix.

Funeral services for Stamps are being planned with Hersman-Nichols Funeral Home of Wagoner.

Justin is survived by his parents, Randy and Tina Stamps of  Wagoner and Alan Cook of Porter; his sisters, Amber Stamps of Wagoner and Christy Warren and husband Robert of Muskogee; his brothers, Ronnie Stamps and wife Jessica and Chouteau and Teddy Cook of Porter; grandparents, Grady and Jane Lawhorn of Wagoner and Tommy Stamps of Pryor.

3rd Death of 2009

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Tower tech succumbs in Texas following fall
 
UPDATE July 20, 2009 -Visitation services for Lucas Tucker will be held Tuesday, July 21, from 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the Baumgardner Funeral Home, 212 N. Tarrant St., Crowley, TX.
A funeral service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 22 at the Crowley Cemetery located on the 100 block of N. Hampton St., Crowley.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

July 18, 2009 - A tower technician working in De Kalb, TX was killed this afternoon after falling from a communications tower owned by AT&T Mobility at 640 Route 82.

Lucas Tucker, 28, of Crowley, had been running transmission lines in snap-in hangers at approximately the100-foot level on the 337-foot guyed tower when he fell, reportedly hitting the structure's ice bridge.

A fellow worker on the three-man crew was approximately 20 feet below Tucker, but reportedly did not hear him raise his voice in distress as he brushed him on the way down.

The accident happened at approximately 2:30 p.m. and De Kalb's emergency medical personnel were at the tower site within minutes. Tucker was pronounced dead at the scene.

He was employed by Lariat Communications, a subcontractor that was hired to install a Metro PCS co-location. The Burleson, TX company is owned by Ralph Hines.

Tucker, who had more than ten years of experience in climbing, is survived by his parents as well as two brothers who also work in the industry.

Tucker was the third worker killed this year after falling from a communications structure while performing professional services for a client.

Services are expected to be announced on Monday. OSHA is investigating the fatality.

De Kalb is a small Texas community of less than 1,800 people located 35 miles west of Texarkana.

2nd Death of 2009

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Arkansas climber dies after falling from Mississippi self-supporter after reported equipment failure
 
Update: June 8, 2009 - According to Shane Duschen's wife, Shanon, her husband was not careless on the tower when he fell on June 3, but his safety equipment failed, causing his death.
"Let this be a lesson to all of you in this profession. Do not take for granted that you are 100% safe as there is never a guarantee. Please do routine inspections of your belts and harnesses," the distraught mother of three young girls said.

A number of people knowledgeable about the incident said that Duschen's lanyard is still attached to the tower this morning and he had his relatively new harness on when he was pronounced dead at the base of the 250-foot self supporting tower.

Officials have prohibited anyone from climbing the tower to retrieve it until a representative of OSHA is on site later today to receive the equipment to further assess what could have caused the accident.
The coroner's report identified that Duschen and co-worker Richard Rippee just finished lunch before he fell, but according to others close to the accident, the two tower technicians were up near the 217-foot level mounting frame preparing to receive transmission lines.
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Update: June 6, 2009 - Visitation for family and friends of Shane Duschen will be on Sunday, June 7 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Mid Town Baptist Church, 4037 Boone Rd., Benton, AR. Services will start at 2:00 p.m.

A memorial fund has been set up for his family and contributions can be made to:

Shane Duschen Memorial Fund, c/o Simmons First National Bank, Account #10836514, L/R Geyer Springs Branch, 8500 Geyer Springs Rd., Little Rock, AR 72209. For additional information, contact the bank at 501-570-0800.
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June 4, 2009 - Shane Duschen, 28, of Alexander, AR, died yesterday afternoon after he fell 215 feet from a 250' self-supporting tower he was working on in Leland, MS.

He leaves his wife, Shanon, and their three daughters, age 7, 5 and 2.

Duschen was working with a four-man crew on a Crown Castle International tower off of Highway 61.

His employer, Diamond K Tower Co., Inc. of Greenville, was working directly for T- Mobile to install additional transmission lines.
Duschen, who began his employment with Diamond K Tower in 2002, was pronounced dead at the scene.
A 911 call was made by coworker Richard Rippee immediately after Duschen fell, according to Washington County Coroner Methel Johnson. The estimated time of Duschen's death was about 3:00 p.m.
Rippee said that he and Duschen had just finished eating lunch and were talking when Dushen simply fell from the tower, according to the coroner's report.
Johnson said Duschen was wearing a harness when he fell.
OSHA is on site investigating the fatality.

In addition to T-Mobile, the tower is co-located by Sprint PCS and AT&T Mobility.

Duschen's death is the second fatality  this year of a communications technician falling from an elevated structure. A tower technician wearing a harness fell off a monopole on March 17 and died in Lake Worth, FL.
Owned by Mike Kuhn, who has 31 years of experience in the tower business, Diamond K Tower has specialized in cellular tower construction for the past 16 years.

1st Death of 2009

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com  

Florida cell tech fatality is country's first in 2009

March 17, 2009 - Updated March 19, 2009  - A tower technician wearing a harness fell off a monopole and died about noon today on Heritage Farms Road and U.S. 441, in Lake Worth, Fl.,  authorities said.

The man who died, 36-year-old Clinton Waters of Lake Wales, worked for Skyhawk Wireless Staffing, a specialized temp agency hired by Andrew Construction Services to work on the monopalm.

It is unclear how the accident occurred because the worker was wearing safety gear, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said, but they could not identify if the worker was tied off to the structure at the time that he fell or if it was an equipment failure.

The height of the tower was 120 feet, according to Captain Don Delucia with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue.

The man and his co-worker were both on the new structure being built for T-Mobile. They were part of a five-member crew.

Representatives of Andrew Construction Services and OSHA are expected to be on site tomorrow to identify what might have caused Waters' death.

Bulletin board posts and a news blog said the incident might have occurred when Waters was transitioning from a man basket to the monopalm.

However, according to a number of people knowledgeable about the accident, Waters had been working on the monopalm for almost three hours prior to his sudden fall.

Although there was a man basket on the job, in a picture taken immediately after the accident, the basket is sitting on the bed of the crane, detached from any rigging.

Other news pictures show what appears to be two safety lines on the structure. It also appears that the fronds were stored at the tower site and were not being installed at the time of the worker's fall.

He was the first industry fatality in 2009.

Waters began his career in Florida in 1996 with Atlantic Tower Construction, Inc., managed by Brian and Ann Silk. The Silks later founded United Telecom of Central Florida, Inc. and Waters worked there a number of times. He moved on to other companies during the past 12 years, including Andrew Systems Inc., and his most recent position was as a subcontracted technician with the Skyhawk staffing firm.

"Clint was a very hard worker and was always trying to better himself. He was quick witted and was sure to make you laugh with his humor," said Brian Silk who was taken back by the tragic news.

Many people described waters as a good family man who befriended countless tower workers.

"I think that all of us who have known him can say it has been a great loss for a close circle of friends that through the years have had to part our own ways. I'm sorry for his wife and children who have to deal with his loss," said former co-worker and friend Scott Bartle.

Waters was married and had a son and daughter.

Last May, a tower maintenance worker died when he fell from a TV tower in Miami. The broadcast tower is adjacent to where WirelessEstimator.com is currently following the construction of a 1,000-foot tall digital tower.

Following Texas, Florida appears to have more tower companies and crews than any other state in the country.

12th Death of 2008

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Tucson technician dies following 65-foot fall

November 18, 2008 - Updated November 19, 2008 - A 22-year-old tower technician working approximately 65 feet up on a tower fell to the ground today while adding equipment to the tower, said Todd Cupell, spokesman for the Corona de Tucson Fire Department in Arizona.
Cupell said the man was unconscious and unresponsive, but alive and in critical condition when he was taken by helicopter to a local hospital.

However, a spokesperson for the Pima County Sheriff's Department said that Edward Wallen had died from his injuries.

Cupell said that original reports that the worker was a woman were incorrect.
The tower is located at 16336 S. Houghton Road, about a half mile south of Houghton and Sahuarita roads. The emergency call came in at 12:31 p.m., according to authorities.

The tech was working with another employee of Wallen Communications, based out of Tucson and Phoenix. Established in 2001, the company specializes in cell site construction and broadcast microwave installation.
"I don't know for sure whether it was operator error or if it was the equipment he was using," Cupell said.
Cupell said the structure is a self supporting tower that had been built and remained vacant for a couple of years, but had recently seen tenant activity. He was unaware of the tower's current owner.

The FCC's database does not identify a registered structure at 16336 S. Houghton Road, but shows an 82-foot structure for Alltel Communications at 16355 S. Houghton Road.

11th Death of 2008

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Police seeking to identify if deceased worker fell from tower prior to falling through skylight
 
October 24, 2008 - Update 10/25/08 - Ellensburg, Washington police say that they are investigating the death of a  24-year-old man who died yesterday afternoon after a 35-foot fall through a skylight from a tower atop the roof of Kelleher Motor Company.
 "A worker on the roof fell through the skylight onto the concrete floor in the shop," said Dave Radcliff, captain paramedic with Kittitas Valley Fire and Rescue.
According to a police official, Gary D. Sivey, a Central Washington University student was an employee of Cascade 1 Inc., a wireless internet provider.
Radcliff said the man may have either walked onto the skylight and fell or fell from even higher up from a tower on the roof.
The worker was taken to Kittitas Valley Community Hospital, suffering from "massive multi-system trauma." He was suffering from a cardiac arrest when emergency personnel arrived.

10th Death of 2008

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

AT&T night cut proves to be deadly for 33-year-old Washington tower technician

 
September 16, 2008 - Updated September 19, 2008 -  A Bonney Lake tower technician fell to his death from an elevator shaft in Port Angeles, Washington while performing a night cut.

Authorities say 33-year old Jeremy Combs died just after midnight last Friday when he fell from the exterior of the elevator shaft on top of the Elks building in downtown Port Angeles.

Port Angeles police received the emergency call at 12:01 a.m., and Combs was still alive when paramedics and police officers arrived.

He was pronounced dead at Olympic Medical Center at 1:43 a.m.

Combs was about 32 feet up the shaft when he fell to the building's rooftop. According to Port Angeles police, Combs was part of a crew of Emerald Wireless Communications, Inc. sub-contracting for AT&T.

According to Rick White, Labor and Industries compliance officer, Combs was not wearing safety equipment when he fell.
White said the antenna mounts were about 4.5 feet high, and stood atop the building's elevator shaft.

Combs lost his balance and fell backward onto a lower roof on the fourth floor, White said.

The Buckley antenna and line company was established in 2000.

Combs was the tenth communications worker killed this year from falling from an elevated structure. Four of them were on AT&T projects.

Funeral services for the well-respected tower foreman will be held at Yahn and Son Funeral Home, 55 West Valley Highway, Auburn, on Wednesday, September 17 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.

Jeremy is survived by his wife, and their two children, Robert Allen Scott and Ashley Joy. He is also survived by his Grandfather Robert White, Mother Susan Combs, Sisters, Cindy Bates (Joey), Kristen Kirkland (Jay), and Michelle Manuel (Steve), and many nieces, nephews, extended family and dear friends.

Prior to his employment with Emerald Wireless, he worked for Brookstone Construction, Wren Construction and Steelhead Construction.
See: Four hundred pay tribute to Combs

9th Death of 2008

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Painter succumbs at base of broadcast tower site

July 21, 2007 - A tower painter was discovered by a broadcast engineer at the base of WDAZ's 1,400-foot tower in Petersburg, ND yesterday.
The Nelson County Sheriff's Department responded to a call at about 6:00 P.M. from the station's engineer, Nate Millard, who discovered the body of 38-year-old Darrel Hovde of Mandan.
Authorities said Hovde worked for All State Tower Company of Bismarck.
Hoyde was working alone painting the tower, Millard said, at about the 100-foot level. When Millard looked out a second story window he said he discovered the tower painter laying on his side in a semi-fetal position.
It appeared to Millard that Hoyde had fallen from the TV tower. "You could see where a trail of paint ended about 50 feet up," Millard said.
Millard said Hoyde still had his safety equipment on. Hovde's body has been sent to Bismarck for an autopsy to determine the cause of death. If the coroner identifies that Hoyde died from blunt trauma, he will be the ninth communications worker that was killed this year from falling from a communications tower.

8th Death of 2008

Article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

New Jersey tech is the nation's eighth fatality
 
July 19, 2008 - Vineland New Jersey Police Chief Timothy Codispoti has confirmed that the nation lost another tower technician this year when a Franklinville man died yesterday after falling approximately 60 feet from a cell phone tower yesterday.

Gerard M. Leclercq, employed by Paramount Advanced Wireless LLC of Pennsauken, was working with two other crew members when he fell. The 55-year-old tower technician had been working on a Crown Castle International tower off of Panther Rd.
Leclercq, who reportedly had family working for him in the industry, fell at approximately 10:50 a.m. while his two coworkers were on the ground, according to Vineland Detective Sergeant Len Wolf.
Investigators from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration were on the scene and investigating the incident until late Friday evening.
Paramount Advanced Wireless LLC is a well-known, long-established company that has its roots in the communications industry since the early build-out days of cellular communications. The firm has taken an active role in tower safety and is a participant in an industry OSHA safety alliance.
Leclercq's death was the eighth fatality in 2008 of a worker falling from a communications structure.

6 Tower Deaths in 5 Weeks

This article was originally posted at the following link:
Fortune Magazine Article

Fatal bandwidth: 6 cell tower deaths in 5 weeks

Posted by Philip Elmer-DeWitt

May 28, 2008 9:00 AM

There's a price to pay for the wireless networks we take for granted.
On May 16, Jonathan Guilford, 25, of Fort Payne, Alabama, was working on an AT&T UMTS (3G) project in Haubstadt, Ind., when he fell to his death from a 200-foot tower, according to a report in Wireless Estimator, an online newsletter that covers the communications construction industry.
Falls from high towers are not unheard of in this business. But for more than four months -- between Dec. 5 and April 11 -- the industry was fatality free.
Then in April, as Wireless Estimator president Craig Lekutis notes with alarm, five workers fell to their death from mobile phone towers in the space of 12 days. Guilford's death in May was the sixth this year.
Accidents like this often come in spurts, says Lekutis, an industry veteran with 27 years experience. There were 10 fatal falls from elevated structures of all kinds (including TV, electrical and water towers) in 2007, and a record 18 in 2006. But this year's concentrated run of cell tower accidents, he says, was extraordinary.
The toll, as recorded by Wireless Estimator:

• April 12: A 34-year-old cell tower technician from Oklahoma man died after falling 150 feet from monopole antenna in Wake Forest, NC. It was the nation's first death in 2008 of a communications worker falling from an elevated structure.
• April 14: A tower worker employed by Cornerstone Tower of Grand Island, Neb., fell to his death in Moorcroft, WY.
• April 15: A 38-year-old technician finished tightening the bolts on a guyed wireless tower in San Antonio, TX, "sort of lean[ed] back a little," according to witnesses, and fell 225 feet to his death.
• April 17: North Carolina suffered its second cell tower fatality in a week when a 46-year-old Chesapeake, VA, man fell from a communications antenna in Frisco, NC.
• April 23: A Griffin, GA, man died from extensive head and chest injuries after falling 100 feet from a communications tower near Natchez, MS. He was reportedly hanging boom gates to a Cell South antenna when he fell.
• May 16: Guilford was rappelling down a load line attached to a 200 foot monopole when he stopped abruptly 140 feet up and bounced as if on a bungee cord, disengaging the carabiner that was secured to the tower. (link)

At least three of the six accidents, Lekutis says, citing industry documents, occurred on AT&T projects.
On May 21, AT&T (T) issued a press release describing its $20 billion roll-out of a nationwide 3G network. It promised to have 275 of the markets it serves in the U.S. 3G-ready by the end of June, and to finish the remaining 75 by the end of the year (see here). AT&T is the exclusive U.S. carrier for Apple's (AAPL) iPhone. A new, 3G version of that device is widely expected to be released in June.
A spokesman for AT&T Mobile confirms that Jonathan Guilford was working on a tower for an AT&T 3G network, but denies that his death or the others had anything to do with the June deadline. "That is a software upgrade," says William Marks. "You go to each tower and use a laptop to perform the upgrade at the base station at the bottom of the tower. There is no need to climb towers."
Marks acknowledges that AT&T is continuing to bring 3G networking to new markets in the U.S., work that involves building new towers and installing new antennas. But he says that this is part of the company's broader 3G roll-out, and unrelated to any events in June.
On April 21, after the first two deaths on its projects, AT&T called for a construction stand down and issued an order to subcontractors that read, in part:

"AT&T ... requires you to hold, at a minimum, a half-day safety refresher training course this week with all of your construction employees and subcontractors providing services for AT&T. Upon completion of the safety refresher training this week, AT&T expects that you will reinforce this training with additional random safety checks at the construction sites to ensure that appropriate safety measures are being used."

AT&T's Marks prefers to describe the order as a "refresher course," rather than stand down. "We consider the safety of our contractors and our employees to be our first priority," he says.
[Photo courtesy of Wireless Estimator.]

7th Death of 2008

This article courtesy of WirelessEstimator.com

Tower tech falls to his death in South Florida

May 22, 2008 - A worker employed by Structural Systems Technology, Inc. of McLean, Virginia fell to his death at 12:04 p.m. today north of Miami, Florida, according to a spokesman for Miami Dade Fire Rescue.


Darren Joe Reed had been performing maintenance work on the Channel 7 WSVN tower at 502 NW 207th St.
The area is called the antenna farm, where many broadcast companies maintain towers. The structures are landmark locations and can be seen while flying into Miami or Ft. Lauderdale airports, and are visible from I-95 and the Florida Turnpike.
The death was the seventh fatality  this year of a worker falling from a communications structure.
A spokeswoman for the Fox affiliate said that the station did not have any additional information at this time.
Structural Systems Technology has been designing and constructing towers and related facilities worldwide for over 30 years.


On June 2, 1988, three SST workers were killed when the 2,000-foot Kirksville, MO television tower they were reinforcing collapsed. The KTVO-TV tower, owned at that time by Federal Broadcasting, was undergoing a structural upgrade and fell during calm weather as braces were being replaced.


A SST worker was injured on January 11, 2008, when a 2,000-foot TV tower collapsed in Redfield, Arkansas while a crew was reguying the structure.