Another Worker Hurt at Disneyland Expansion

A carpenter was hospitalized Wednesday after an accident at the same construction site, the Grand Californian Hotel, where two workers were seriously injured eight days earlier.

Billy Guzman, 57, of Las Vegas was measuring the area when he was pinned between two motorized lifts. He was taken to UC Irvine Medical Center and listed in good condition.

Less than two weeks ago, two workers suffered broken bones when their scaffolding collapsed, dropping them about 25 feet onto a roof.

“We are going to look at the safety aspects here and try to minimize any future incidents,” said Bob Berenguer, operations manager for Turner Construction, which is overseeing the hotel project at Walt Disney Co.’s expansion resort next to Disneyland. “Fortunately, [Guzman] was not seriously injured.”

Guzman worked for MJ Dean Construction, a Turner subcontractor. Berenguer said that Turner has a good safety record and that in the 1 1/2 years the company has been working at the site, the number of accidents has been minimal.

“We are in the top 25% as far as having a good safety record” is concerned, Berenguer said, citing the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Guzman was in the atrium of the hotel, where MJ Dean Construction is installing ceiling frames.

Two motorized lifts that serve as portable scaffolding were passing nearby, and one of the drivers did not see Guzman below, said Anaheim Fire Department spokesman Kent Mastain. Guzman was pinned between the two machines, he said, but never lost consciousness.

Dean Fryer of the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health said the accident was reported to the agency at 9:30 a.m.

“We are going to look at the equipment to see if there were any malfunctions,” he said. “We will also talk to the operator of the equipment and any other employees to fill in the details just prior to the incident.”

Fryer said the agency “would be more concerned” if both accidents had involved the same employer.

“We are looking at separate companies, employees and operations,” he said. “It just happens that they are at the same job site. There are totally separate issues.”