Employer appealing citations leveled after summer Ambassador Bridge fall

Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ont., on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Travis Fortnum/CTV News Windsor)

The investigation into the incident of an ironworker falling from the Ambassador Bridge has resulted in his employer facing six citations from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA).

Spencer Baker told CTV News he was following all the rules on July 12, while working with a team replacing the bridges suspension cables — but something went wrong and Baker fell 150-feet from the bridge deck into the Detroit River below.

MIOSHA told CTV News they conducted a safety investigation at Structural Technologies LLC. between July 13 and Aug. 1. in response to Baker’s fall – in the agencies words, resulting in “six alleged serious citations.”

Those citations include:

• Construction Standard Part 1, General Rules – Employer had no procedure for the use of their two-way radio to communicate with the available lifeboat.
• Construction Standard Part 6, Personal Protective Equipment – Workers were not issued life jackets or buoyant work vests when working near or over water.
• Construction Standard Part 6, Personal Protective Equipment – Workers did not have a life buoy available when working near or over water.
• Construction Standard Part 45, Fall Protection - Workers not using fall protection while working on top of a flatbed trailer parked within two feet of the bridge edge.
• Construction Standard Part 45, Fall Protection – At least four workers working between the trailer and the guardrail were exposed to fall hazards from the top guardrail not being 42 inches high.
• Construction Standard Part 45, Fall Protection - Training - There were inadequacies in the workers knowledge and use of fall protection systems.

MIOSHA initially proposed a penalty of $29,400 on Aug. 25, but the employer appealed the citations on Oct. 12.