Hill v. Eaton & Smith

NOURSE, P. J.

—Plaintiff appeals from a judgment of non-suit. His action for damages for personal injuries was filed against Eaton & Smith who were the general contractors engaged in erecting the building upon which plaintiff was injured. The building comprised a number of units, each unit forming a separate airplane hangar. At the time of his injury plaintiff was employed by the Alta Roofing Co., who had subcontracted to place a roof upon the building. There is no real dispute as to the facts.

Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, he had proved at the time of nonsuit that he was injured during his employment by the Alta Roofing Co. and that at the time of his injury he was doing his work according to the customary procedure and was an experienced roofer. Plaintiff was injured while engaged in laying base sheets which were 40 feet long and 32 inches wide and weighed 55 pounds to the 100-square feet. The strips were composed of rags, asbestos, asphalt and cowhair and were about % inch thick. The roof was longer than the strips and they had to be pieced. The men worked in pairs in placing the strips in position and plaintiff was working on the ridge of the building which slanted toward the valley in which the helper was working. It is plaintiff’s contention that he was pulling against the strip to place it in position, which is the standard practice in laying the strips, when the strip tore and he tumbled backwards some five or six feet into the opening of an open skylight, and onto the concrete floor below, inflicting injury upon himself. The skylight, which was approximately 7 feet by 12 feet was not protected in any way while the roofers were working.

• The wooden decks of these roofs were constructed by carpenters in the employ of the defendant and contained a row of skylights. As the skylight openings were made they were covered with heavy wire mesh by defendant’s employees, but as each roof was completed, as to the wooden deck, the de

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fendant’s employees moved the coverings. These wire meshes extended about two feet over the openings and had to be removed before the base sheets were laid. In putting on the base sheet and the hot asphalt the employees of the Alta Roofing Company would fold the base sheet over the place of the skylight, thus making it difficult to provide any protection for the opening.