Broward County is suing the construction team behind the Fort Lauderdale project where a crane collapsed in 2024, killing one worker.
Broward sued Kast Construction, Maxim Crane Works, Phoenix Rigging & Erecting, Gables Residential Services and CG Riverwalk over the deadly accident on the Gables Riverwalk site at 333 North New River Drive East. CG Riverwalk is the Gables Residential affiliate developing the project.
The 42-story apartment building was recently completed and has 295 units. Asking rents range from just over $4,000 to nearly $11,000 a month, according to Apartments.com. The units range from 776-square-foot one-bedroom apartments to 2,130-square-foot three-bedroom units.
The accident occurred in April 2024, when a platform for equipment staging failed and caused the partial collapse of the metal crane, killing 27-year-old construction worker Jorge De La Torre and injuring three others. Two people were transported to the hospital and one person with minor injuries refused treatment.
Weeks after the accident, Gemmalyn Castillo sued the same group of defendants over alleged negligence, seeking more than $50 million in damages. Castillo was injured in a rideshare traveling across the Southeast Third Avenue bridge.
The county alleges the collapse “caused significant structural damage to public infrastructure, including the subject bridge owned and maintained by Broward County,” according to the complaint. The suit alleges negligence and is seeking an unspecified amount of damages.
West Palm Beach-based Kast Construction, Atlanta-based Gables Residential, Wilder, Kentucky-based Maxim Crane Works and Phoenix Rigging & Erecting did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Castillo’s lawsuit is ongoing. She alleged in her complaint that she was “crushed by the impact of the heavy crane and suffered severe and serious head and facial trauma.” Her attorney later amended her complaint to add more defendants, including two crane operators.
Months after the collapse, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found two contractors could have prevented the accident.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Phoenix Rigging & Erecting with three violations for failing to identify and replace corroded and cracked pins or bolts that would have secured the crane’s climbing frame, failing to ensure the use of fall protection equipment and failing to conduct pre-inspections of crane components before allowing employees to begin work. Maxim Crane Works, the crane rental company, was also cited for similar failures. The citations proposed $61,299 in penalties.
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