A tubular welded frame scaffold was covered with ice and snow. A construction laborer working on the third level slipped and fell headfirst to his death on the pavement about 20 feet (6.1 meters) below.

When investigators took a look at the scaffold, they found it didn’t measure up to safety standards. The planking was inadequate, and there was no guard rail. Also missing were access ladders for various scaffold levels. The law requires ice and snow to be removed as soon as possible to prevent slippery conditions on scaffolds, but this had not been done