OSHA says that if the construction industry focused on eliminating the top four causes of fatalities among workers, 410 worker fatalities a year could be prevented.  Out of 4,114 worker fatalities in private industry in 2011, 721 (17.5 percent) were in construction.

Stakeholders who are interested in contributing their opinions to OSHA’s Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard are invited to a meeting on April 3, from 1:30-4:30 p.m. in Washington, D.C. (Two meetings already scheduled for April 2 and 3 are full.)

A call from the Moonachie, NJ Police Department last October alerted OSHA to a serious accident at a worksite – caused by a hazard that the agency has focused considerable resources on reducing.

A New York City construction worker was rescued from an underground trench at subway construction projection early this morning, after being stuck in “muck” from the waist down for nearly four hours. The worker became trapped at 8:30 p.m. last night 75 feet below ground at the Second Avenue subway line site in Manhattan.

According to the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), attendees who will make their way to Las Vegas for Safety 2013, June 24-26, are predominantly highly experienced safety professionals, with 78% having more than 10 years experience in their field.

From the general (EHS leadership) to the specific (industry specific, that is), sessions that will be held at Safety 2013, June 24-27 in Las Vegas, represent both long-standing topics and emerging challenges.

From oil and gas industry safety concerns to fall-related fatalities to truckers hours of service, here are the top OEHS-related stories of the week as featured on ISHN.com:

A new NIOSH-funded study on fatalities in the construction industry suggests roofers in residential construction are among those most likely to die in falls from roofs. The study, "Fatal falls from roofs among U.S. construction workers," finds that "the odds of fatal falls from roofs were higher for roofing and residential construction than any other construction sector."

Emergency responders in Boston said a construction worker who fell 30 feet was spared serious injury when he landed on bubble wrap, according to UPI. A spokesman for the Boston Fire Department said the 38-year-old worker fell 30 feet off a building and landed in a pile of bubble wrap taken from the construction site`s scaffolding.

The Fire Sprinkler Initiative, a project of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), has created a presentation highlighting the dangers of lightweight construction and the corresponding benefits of home fire sprinklers. Lightweight construction began to appear 25 years ago.