Family of man who died after falling through South Park skylight files lawsuit

The wife of a man who died while doing restoration work on Agricultural Hall in South Park last year filed a lawsuit against the county and contractor Thursday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court.

Kelly A. Scabilloni filed the complaint as the administrator of Frank Scabilloni’s estate.

It includes claims for negligence and wrongful death and names as defendants T Construction and Consulting Services LLC and Allegheny County.

Neither defendant immediately returned messages seeking comment.

Scabilloni, 59, of Bethel Park, died on June 23 after falling through a skylight in the roof of the building that was being restored. He had worked for Marsa Masonry as a foreman and bricklayer for 39 years.

The lawsuit said Allegheny County had contracted with T Construction to do restoration and repair work in South Park, including on Agricultural Hall, which sits about 100 feet back from Brownsville Road.

Marsa was a subcontractor on the job. Its project, the lawsuit said, involved taking down the brick front wall of Agricultural Hall and rebuilding it.

The job was almost finished, and June 23 was the last day scheduled for Scabilloni and his company to work there.

The lawsuit said Scabilloni arrived at the job site at 7:45 a.m. to finish his work, including acid washing and power washing the new brick masonry, as well as caulking between the capstones of the rebuilt wall.

Later that morning, Scabilloni was on the top level of scaffolding and stepped onto the roof to reach portions of the roof that weren’t accessible when he stumbled and fell backward, striking one of the skylights, the lawsuit said.

The skylight wasn’t readily visible to Scabilloni, the complaint continued, and when he struck it, it gave way, causing him to fall through to the concrete floor 21 feet below.

The lawsuit said that Agricultural Hall was at least 70 years old and had 18 fiberglass skylights measuring 9 feet by 6 feet that had never been repaired or replaced. The plaintiff alleges that the skylights’ sealants were no longer holding, and that water and moisture had gotten in.

The lawsuit also alleges there was no fall protection on the roof or covers on the skylights. According to the complaint, federal worker safety law requires that skylights be guarded by a screen or fixed railing on all sides, and that they cannot be grandfathered in because of age.

According to records kept with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, following an investigation in Scabilloni’s death, Marsa was found to have one serious violation for failing to have fall protection resulting in a fine of $13,516.

The complaint also alleges other violations, such as ladders not being the proper length or properly secured and scaffolding not being fully planked or decked.

The lawsuit accuses T Construction of failing to secure the safety of the work site or to oversee Marsa’s safety compliance, and accuses Allegheny County of failing to keep Agricultural Hall up to necessary building standards.