PHILADELPHIA, June 28, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- $68.5 million in damages was awarded yesterday by a Philadelphia jury to the widow of a 38-year-old construction worker who was killed in December, 2021, after falling from an unsecured, unsafe fifth-floor balcony at a Fitler Square luxury townhouse site developed by defendant OCF Construction LLC. Siarhei Marhunou's widow, Hanna, and the couple’s now three-year-old son, were represented at trial of the negligence, wrongful death and survival action litigation (Marhunova v. OCF Construction, LLC, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Case ID: 220501520) by the catastrophic construction negligence team (Jeffrey P. Goodman and Aidan B. Carickhoff) from Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky.
“Worker safety can never come second to profits. The evidence in this case showed OCF cut corners on this project at every turn, and it had tragic consequences. Management of this construction project was a labyrinth of corporate structure designed to protect the developers. Instead, construction projects need to be set up to protect workers. The jury saw through OCF's shell games."
Attorney Carickhoff said after the four-day, Court of Common Pleas trial, “No amount of money can ever compensate this grieving, resilient family for their loss. The verdict was just and provided accountability. It was an honor to represent a family with the courage to stand up against businesses who believe they're above the law."
The tragedy occurred December 15, 2021, at 2330 Sansom St., in the city’s Fitler Square neighborhood, where a new five-unit townhouse cluster was being developed by Ori Feibush through several of his affiliated companies; OCF Construction, LLC, was the general contractor. Mr. Marhunou, working for a subcontractor, was installing siding when he fell about 50 feet through a temporary wooden railing to the ground from a fifth-floor balcony. There were numerous violations of OSHA construction-site safety requirements, that include extensive fall protections when workers are more than six feet above the ground.
In addition to OCF Construction, a portion of the jury award was allocated to defendants: Fitler Construction Group, 2330 Sansom Street LLC, HSC Construction, and Hammers Construction. Only Hammers and HSC were not Feibush-affiliated businesses.
Contacts:
Jeffrey P. Goodman / jgoodman@smbb.com / 215-840-6450
Aidan B. Carickhoff / acarickhoff@smbb.com / 215-575-3861
Steph Rosenfeld / steph@idadvisors.com / 215-514-4101
Photo available: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/66ead80a-06c0-4b26-9aff-99695124784e
