Case Evaluation

: Deadly Construction Accident at Mall

INDIANAPOLIS - Two men fell 40 feet at a construction site Saturday morning at the Castleton Square Mall. One man died. Another is in critical condition.

"This is a real dark day in our local right here," said Derick Eagens, friend of the victim. Eagans planned to meet his friend, 39-year-old Abe Mallis, on his lunch break at the future site of the Castleton Movieplex, but the construction site was eerily quiet. He later learned Mallis and another man fell 40 feet from a scaffolding bridge. Mallis suffered severe injuries and Shane Pruitt died.

Police say a pin holding a bolt in place on the scaffolding had come loose. The two men unhooked their harnesses and walked to the end of the scaffolding to repair it, and that's when the scaffolding started to tip.

"In the process there was too much weight placed on that end and the cable holding that scaffolding, suspended broke," explained Sgt. Matt Mount, from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Mallis landed on top of Pruitt, from Van Werk, Ohio. Two other men on the same scaffolding were tied to their safety lines and were pulled to safety.

Construction was stopped for the day on Saturday.

Eagen, who also works construction and belongs to the same labor union as Mallis, says one mistake can be deadly. "A lot of us make poor decisions, sometimes that guardian angel isn't looking out for you."

On Eagen's next job, he says he'll be more cautious. "You are supposed to come here in one piece and leave in one piece so if anything I hope people out there on these swinging stages realize that, you know, don't be selfish. Think of your family, think of your loved ones."

The Indiana Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration is investigating.


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