Man Files Suit Against Six Companies After Scaffolding Collapse

A former construction worker who alleges that he sustained sever personal injuries to his spine after the scaffolding on which he was working plummeted to the ground has filed suit against six companies.

According to the suit, which was filed in Madison County, Illinois Circuit Court on November 24, on December 22, 2006, Thomas Capstick was working on the Sugar Fork Creek Bridge construction project in Madison County when the scaffolding collapsed and he fell to the ground.

Capstick claims that, in addition to the disabling injuries to his spine, he lost large amounts of money due to his inability to pursue a normal, gainful occupation and his incurring substantial medical expenses.

Capstick claims negligence on the part of Elite Contracting, the company which directed, controlled, scheduled, monitored, participated in, and inspected his work, for failure to reasonably inspect the premises and the work being done on them, failure to erect a reasonably safe scaffold, and failure to warn of the unsafe scaffold.

Capstick also alleges negligence on the part of Dayton Superior Corporation, the manufacturer and seller of the scaffolding, for failure to warn users of bolts of inadequate strength in its scaffolding and designing a scaffold that was supported by bolts of inadequate strength.

Capstick also claims negligence on the part of ITW Red Head, the manufacturer and seller of the bolts used in the scaffolding, for failure to warn users that the bolts were of inadequate strength to support weights such as the scaffolding and for designing inadequate strength bolts.

The seller of the blots, OK Fasteners, was negligent for failure to warn users of the purposes of the bolts, failure to properly inspect the bolts for defects, and selling bolts of insufficient properties to support the scaffolding.

Keller Construction, the general contractor for the Sugar Fork Creek Bridge construction project, was negligent for failure to reasonably inspect the premises and the work being performed on them, failure to assemble a safe scaffold, and failure to warn that the scaffold was unsafe.

Capstick is seeking damages in excess of $500,000, plus cots, in the 10-count suit.