Last August, Higinio Romero was working on the roof of a condo in South Florida when he slipped and fell two stories, landing on rocks below. Emergency workers found him unconscious and bleeding from his ears. Romero — a father of two children, 4 months old and 10 years old — died about an hour later. According to a sheriff’s report, he had unclipped his safety harness shortly before the fall.
Federal safety rules aim to prevent workers from falling to their deaths, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) routinely investigates and penalizes negligent employers. OSHA recently cited Romero’s employer, the Tarheel Corporation, for three serious violations of fall-protection rules and sought $32,000 in penalties. An attorney for Tarheel said the company is contesting the OSHA violations.