Worker dies in lift fall

An American construction worker has died after a construction lift fell, hitting an apartment block in Philadelphia this week.

The builder, 40-year-old James Wilson, fell 125 feet when the lift collapsed, suggesting he was not properly secured to the bucket of the lift while he was working on a church roof.

The man, who worked for Masonry Preservation Group, was pronounced dead at Hahnemann University Hospital.

The falling lift hit the corner of a five-storey apartment building, knocked down a set of traffic lights and crashed into two parked vehicles on the street. Three people in cars were treated for minor injuries from falling debris and tenants in the apartment block were evacuated; none were injured.

According to the US Occupational Health and Safety Administration, crane accidents kill up to 82 construction workers each year in the United States. The figure would likely not include the kind of lift involved in the fatality.