Columbia construction worker dies after materials fall at building site, coroner says

An incident at a Columbia construction site left one worker dead Friday, according to Richland County Coroner Gary Watts.

Lazaro Ramirez, 38, was working at a housing development when a pallet of construction supplies dropped on him, Watts said. The incident happened at 172 Council Loop, which is in the Burnside Farm neighborhood south of Garners Ferry Road near Hazelwood Road.

The supplies fell on Ramirez around 10 a.m., Watts said. He was taken by paramedics to Prisma Health Richland, where he died at 12:30 p.m. An autopsy indicated he died from blunt crush force trauma to the upper torso, Watts said.

The Richland County Coroner’s Office is investigating and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, was notified.

David Travis Bland

The State

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David Travis Bland is The State’s editorial editor. In his prior position as a reporter, he was named the 2020 South Carolina Journalist of the Year by the SC Press Association. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2010. Support my work with a digital subscription