A special administrator is suing contractors, alleging their negligence caused the death of her husband at a construction site.
Maricela Santoyo, as special administrator for the estate of Vicente Santoyo, filed a lawsuit May 6 in Cook County Circuit Court against Judlao Contracting, Inc., Judlao OHL Group, Burns & McDonnel Engineering Company, Inc., Imperial Crane Services, Inc. and LaGrange Crane Services, Inc., alleging breach of duty, negligence and wrongful death.
According to the complaint, on April 5, Vicente Santoyo suffered injuries at a Des Plaines construction site that caused his death. The suit says Santoyo’s next of kin, including the plaintiff, suffered great losses of personal and pecuniary nature, including loss of companionship, society, comfort, guidance and counsel.
The plaintiff alleges the defendants failed to maintain its equipment in a safe and reasonable condition, failed to provide a safe place to work, failed to adequately operate its crane to protect the life and limbs of any person, moved and transported the steel beam in an unsafe and improper manner and failed to adequately supervise its employees to avoid accidents.
Marciela Santoyo seeks a trial by jury, compensation for injuries and damages suffered, legal costs and any other relief the court deems proper. She is represented by Clifford W. Horwitz of Horwitz & Horwitz and Associates LTD in Chicago.
Cook County Circuit Court Case number 2016L003472
“At OSHA, we’re confident every incident such as this is preventable if all OSHA standards and regulations are followed,” agency spokesman Scott Allen said.
OSHA, according to the release, has opened an investigation with Omega Demolition Corp. of Elgin, which employed the worker who was killed, and Judlau Contracting Inc. of New York, the general contractor on the site. Officials from Omega and Judlau were not immediately available for comment.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration in a news release said the incident was “preventable.”
“OSHA is currently on scene and will conduct a thorough investigation into this tragic and preventable incident,” Larry Joswiak, OSHA’s acting area director in Des Plaines, said Tuesday morning.
