A 48-year-old male contractor has died after getting trapped under two concrete slabs while he worked on a renovation project in Sandy Hill Wednesday afternoon. Another worker was also injured.
The two men were working on concrete steps on a Marlborough Avenue home when two pieces of concrete came loose at about 1:40 p.m. Their colleagues watched from across the street.
The massive slabs of concrete caused both of the men to take a 10-foot fall into a storage room beneath the area where they were working.
"The concrete slab was basically the steps or the ceiling of the cold room, which collapsed on top of the workers," said Marc Messier, spokesperson for Ottawa Fire Services.
While one of the men managed to free himself, the other was trapped under the concrete. Firefighters had to use hydraulic jacks to lift the concrete from his chest.
Although the man was able to speak to paramedics when they arrived; by the time firefighters managed to free him about 40 minutes later he had lost vital signs.
"Paramedics were working on him the entire time while we were extricating. When we got him out, he was (vital signs absent)," said Messier.
Paramedics tried to revive him by re-inflating his lungs and administering drugs to restart his heart. He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
His co-worker, a 36-year-old man, was treated for a fractured ankle. He is in stable condition in hospital.
The two men work for Hoskins Restoration Services Inc. A company website boasts it has more than 35 years of building-restoration experience. The business offers various services, including concrete repairs, brick and stone repairs, parking slab treatment and waterproofing.
Ottawa police and the Ministry of Labour are investigating.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Joanne Schnurr
