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Near miss at West Intermediate prompts OSHA and L&I inspections, administrators say
Summary
Site supervisors reported a wrench fell from ductwork inside a construction partition at West Intermediate and landed on the occupied side; no injuries were reported. The district has requested OSHA and the state labor agency (L&I) to conduct an independent safety inspection and asked contractors to implement immediate corrective actions.
District construction managers told the board that a tool fell from ductwork on the construction side of a partition at West Intermediate and pierced the partitioning to land on the occupied side. Facilities and Dewey representatives characterized the event as a "near miss": no students or staff were injured, but the incident prompted immediate notification of OSHA and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) for independent inspection.
Dewey said precautions had been taken to separate occupied spaces from active construction (barriers, scheduling work to avoid occupied periods), but acknowledged additional safeguards were necessary after the incident. The district's safety staff and facilities director said they would request an OSHA inspection and, if OSHA is unavailable, would call L&I; they also said they would require contractors to correct any safety lapses and follow up with written reports.
The board asked administration to provide a written incident report, list of corrective actions, and confirmation of any external inspections at the next board packet. Solicitor Freund confirmed that OSHA covers contractors while L&I covers district employees, and both reviews were appropriate.
