Police Investigating Death of Roofer Who Fell Off Apartment Roof

CLEARWATER, Fla. — A death investigation is underway at an apartment complex in Clearwater, Fla., where local police said it appears a roofer died after falling off the roof Monday morning.

“We are on scene of a death investigation at 25 N. Belcher Road,” the Clearwater Police Dept. posted to its Facebook page at about 10:30 a.m. Monday. “The preliminary investigation shows that a man died after falling from the roof of a second-story apartment building where roofing work was being done.”

Several media outlets reported that the person who fell was identified by Clearwater Fire & Rescue as Carlos Alejandro Hernandez-Nopaltecatl, 28, of Zellwood, Fla.

The company or companies involved in the roofing project has not yet been released publicly.

The fall occurred at a time with OSHA continually inspects Florida job sites as part of its Regional Emphasis Program on Falls in Construction.

As Roofing Contractor reported last week, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based roofing contractor was fined nearly $133,000 by OSHA for allegedly exposing employees to fall hazards. Several other companies have been cited through the Regional Emphasis Program on Falls in Construction in recent months.

A Maine contractor was indicted earlier this month by a grand jury on charges of manslaughter and workplace manslaughter after a man working for him fell from a roof and died last December. The case is pending in federal court.