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Construction worker crushed when concrete stairwell falls on him, Georgia officials say

A construction worker was killed March 15 when a concrete staircase fell and crushed him as he worked on renovations at an apartment building in Atlanta, officials said.
A construction worker was killed March 15 when a concrete staircase fell and crushed him as he worked on renovations at an apartment building in Atlanta, officials said. Screengrab from WSB-TV Atlanta

A construction worker died after a concrete stairwell collapsed during renovations at an Atlanta apartment building, multiple news outlets report.

The incident occurred Tuesday, March 15, at the rear of one of the buildings along Gun Club Road, WSB-TV reported, citing Atlanta Fire Rescue officials. No one was inside at the time of the accident.

A two-man crew was repairing the stairwell when it fell and crushed one of them, according to the news station.

Site supervisor Darwin Maldonado recalled hearing the collapse and ran to find one of his workers pinned underneath the steps, WXIA reported. Friends and fellow workers identified the victim as Ariel Bonilla.

“We were removing the stairs on the platform,” Maldonado told the news station. “He went up the middle of the platform to remove the second stairs when all suddenly [it] collapsed and everything fell on him.”

McClatchy News reached out to Atlanta Fire Rescue on Wednesday, March 16, and was awaiting a response.

The stairs also damaged a gas meter when they fell, according to WAGA. Officials with Atlanta Gas Light said the gas had been shut off before construction began at the apartments.

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This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 8:07 AM with the headline "Construction worker crushed when concrete stairwell falls on him, Georgia officials say."

Tanasia Kenney
Sun Herald
Tanasia is a service journalism reporter at the Charlotte Observer | CharlotteFive, working remotely from Atlanta, Georgia. She covers restaurant openings/closings in Charlotte and statewide explainers for the NC Service Journalism team. She’s been with McClatchy since 2020.
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