The families of two construction workers killed when an airport hangar in Idaho collapsed are suing several companies that were involved in the building process, alleging the businesses recklessly cut corners and used inappropriate materials for the buildare suing several companies that were involved in the building process, alleging the businesses recklessly cut corners and used inappropriate materials for the build.on Jan. 31, killing three people and injuring nine others.
“Many subcontractors were critical of the rushed schedule,” Enrique Serna and Jane Gordon, the attorneys representing the families, wrote in the lawsuit. “They cited ‘cutting of corners,’ reported ‘bowing of beams,’ snapping cables, a lack of key cross bracing, flange bracing and cable bracing." “Family is the core of who we are at Steel Building Systems,” Andy Speck, the co-owner of SBS and Speck Steel, wrote in an email. “Our heartfelt condolences go out to the victims and their families. We cannot speak to a majority of the complaints filed as SBS was not the installer of the metal building, nor did we possess or demonstrate any authority over job site operations.”
The lift that was holding Coc and Sontay was struck by a falling rafter and slammed into the ground. Coc, who had moved to the United States from Guatemala in 2020, died instantly. Sontay, also a Guatemala citizen who came to the U.S. in 2021, succumbed to his injuries about five minutes later. Both men were supporting families in their home countries, according to the lawsuit.
The building was also constructed using a combination of purchased prefabricated materials and locally-manufactured bracing and structural supports that weren't properly designed to fit the prefabricated pieces, according to the lawsuit. It all resulted in “serious design and engineering defects,” the workers' families contend, a problem that was exacerbated when the strong winds began.
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