Mural painter is rescued after scaffolding broke at Hyde Resort and Residences on Monday. Hallandale Beach Fire Rescue
By David J. Neal, Carli Teproff and Cresonia Hsieh
dneal@miamiherald.com
OCTOBER 24, 2016
Hollywood Beach, Florida
A worker painting a mural on the side of a Hollywood Beach high-rise under construction was killed Monday and another painter was critically injured in the second South Florida scaffolding collapse in just under a week.
The men, who according to police were hired by artist Douglas Hoekzema to paint the mural, were working on the 41-story Hyde Resort and Residences at 4111 S. Ocean Dr. around 1:30 p.m. when the scaffolding fell from 40 feet.
Hallandale Beach Fire Rescue crews inside Station 60, which is right next to Hyde Resort — separated only by a narrow public pathway to the beach — were the first on the scene.
“They heard a loud crash and ran out on the balcony and saw that the scaffolding was on the ground,” said Hallandale Fire Chief Mark Ellis, who added that rescuers saw two men dangling and one on the ground. “They were outside in probably less than a minute.”
Meanwhile, crews from Hollywood and Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue were called to the scene.
The three painters were working on the south side of the building when the scaffolding broke for an unknown reason — sending them and yellow paint falling. Luckily, Ellis said, no construction workers were on the pathway when the giant wooden scaffolding collapsed.
Ellis said all three painters were wearing harnesses, so it was unclear how one of the men fell 40 feet to the ground. The other two were left hanging on the the side of the building.
The man on the ground was immediately transported to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he later died. Meanwhile, Hollywood Fire Rescue’s Technical Rescue Team removed one of the painters from the side of the building and he was taken to the hospital in critical condition. The third painter was rescued by Hallandale Beach’s ladder truck, Ellis said. He was treated on the scene.
Local TV helicopters captured the dramatic rescue on camera. A harnessed man can be seen hanging on by only a rope as firefighters moved a ladder closer. He then walked down to his safety.
Lori Williams, the Hallandale Beach Fire Rescue’s spokeswoman, said the rescue took about two hours and was complicated by the high elevation and the fire station’s close proximity to the incident site.
“It made for a very narrow rescue area,” she said.
While rescuers worked, traffic was diverted from busy A1A. Police tape surrounded the Hyde Resort, which was under construction and will be a 407-unit condo complex when finished. The general contractor for the project, John Moriarty & Associates of Florida, could not be reached for comment Monday night.
Representatives from Hyde Resort and Residences declined to comment about the incident.
Late into the afternoon, investigators were still working on the site, where there was a big pile of debris from the scaffolding. Hollywood police, fire rescue inspectors and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration were investigating the accident. Police had not released the names of the man who was killed or the two who were injured by Monday evening.
Valet workers who were nearby when the accident happened were not allowed to speak with reporters. One woman, who was in a nearby condo building, said she saw the painters dangling.
Construction worker Frank Chicha, who works for Safety Guys, said he was inside the building working when the accident occurred.
“It’s a shame this happened,” he said as he left the construction site for the day. “But these things happen. Accidents happen.”
In fact, Monday’s accident comes just days after scaffolding collapsed last week in the Brickell-area of Miami.
In that accident, which happened Wednesday, one person died and five suffered injuries when scaffolding fell from the Echo Brickell condominium construction site, just south of downtown Miami.
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Family members have identified an artist who was killed Monday when the scaffolding he was on collapsed at a Hollywood building while he was assisting with a mural painting.Raymond Brown was originally from New Jersey and had worked at Perez Art Museum in Miami since it opened in 2013, family members and PAMM officials said Tuesday.
"Hard to speak right now. Our son was our entire life. He loved his work. He loved his adopted home in South Florida and he loved his many friends within Miami's art community. We are devastated," his family said in a statement.
Brown was assisting a mural artist at the Hyde Resorts and Residence off Ocean Drive in Hollywood when the scaffolding they were on collapsed 40 feet from the side of the building.
Brown and another victim were rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital where he later died. The third victim was held in place by a safety harness and survived with minor injuries.
Police on Tuesday identified the other two victims as 36-year-old Douglas Hoekzema of Boca Raton and 36-year-old Jonathan Olsen of Miami.
"Our PAMMily is heartbroken to hear of the passing of Raymond Brown. Ray was a beloved core member of our art handling prep team. He was a talented artist and musician with a great attitude. Hardworking and dependable, Ray began working with PAMM in 2013 to help open our building. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time," PAMM Director Franklin Sirmans said in a statement.Investigators from Hollywood Police, Fire Inspectors and OSHA are working to determine what caused the collapse