A 49-year-old Arcadia man fell to his death June 23 from the scaffolding that collapsed at a residential construction site in Bradenton Beach.
Abelino Olvera was declared dead at the scene, 203 Bay Drive N., where he was working as a subcontractor building a house.
Olvera and Daniel Jose Leon Tomas, 40, of Bradenton, worked on what Bradenton Beach Police Detective Sgt. Lenard Diaz described as self-made scaffolding when the support structure failed, became detached and gave way.
A witness heard a loud cracking noise and looked to see that a wooden platform that Olvera and Tomas had been standing on was aimed upward like a “teeter-totter.”
The workers fell three stories, according to Diaz’s report.
The witness also told Diaz the workers were not harnessed on the scaffold.
Tomas was taken by ambulance to Blake Medical Center in Bradenton, where he was treated for “bumps and bruises,” Diaz said June 30.
The incident was declared a construction accident and the police investigation closed pending a medical examiner’s findings, Diaz reported.
The Islander reached out to Bradenton Beach building official Steve Gilbert July 3 via email regarding permitting and inspections at the construction site and a possible state investigation of the fatality.
Gilbert had not responded to Islander questions as of July 5.
According to online records, the property is owned by 203 Bay Dr N LLC, registered to Todd Buchanan of Tampa in November 2020.
Another island official advised The Islander that there would likely be an investigation by a state construction board.
— Staff Report