Sanchez reviews injury data, falls, and persistent fatalities
Sanchez cites the Mayor's Management Report showing a 45% decrease in serious or fatal construction injuries, from 557 to 308, but notes falls remain the leading cause and that deaths consistently hover around eight per year, with data trends zigzagging since 2022.
We've seen recent encouraging trends in the data.
In fiscal year 2026, the mayor's management reports noted a 45% decrease in serious or fatal construction injuries, which is down from 557 to 308.
Of those serious injuries, falls remain the leading cause over the past two years.
And while the overall decline can signify real progress, more can be done to identify the persistent causes of both serious injuries and deaths on construction sites.
Deaths which consistently hover around eight per year.
And I have to add that while these numbers seem positive, the trends have also zigzagged up and down since 2022 during my tenure as housing chair, and my usual optimism has a little pause.
In the same way that New York City seeks to prevent all traffic fatalities through the Vision Zero initiative, we should use a similar data-driven approach to eliminate construction-related deaths entirely.