November 6, 2008

Skanska gets a real-life safety test

Photos courtesy of Skanska [enlarge]

Skanska raised $54,642 for the Start! Puget Sound Heart Walk on Oct. 4 and walked for Don Venefra, a Skanska subcontractor who survived a heart attack on the job in September at the Casino Snoqualmie construction site.

PAT FAIN WAS IN HIS trailer on the Casino Snoqualmie construction site when he got the call that a subcontractor was in distress and might be having a heart attack. Fain, a project environmental health and safety manager for Skanska USA Building, grabbed his first-aid bag and rushed to the casino area. Meanwhile, an emergency plan that had been drilled several times over the previous year went into action: A designated worker called 911 and others got in position at site entry gates and along routes to direct emergency personnel through the 50-acre site.

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Previous columns:

• Mount Rainier road in need of $11.6M fix, 10-30-2008
• Don't demolish that old home, send it up in smoke, 10-23-2008
• Turner turns a deeper shade of green, 10-16-2008
• Local firm finds a niche in deconstruction, 10-09-2008
• Opportunities await builders of charging stations, 10-02-2008
• Development team tries out modular construction, 09-25-2008
• Habitat store helps fund low-income homes, 09-18-2008
• Skanska paves the way for future construction managers, 09-11-2008