Fatal Construction Site Accident in Son Vida: Entrepreneur Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

During construction work in Son Vida, a 61-year-old bricklayer died in 2018. A court has now sentenced the responsible entrepreneur to six months in prison – despite a compensation payment.

An accident that lingers

Sometimes it's the simple things that are missing: a helmet, a clear plan, and a brief safety briefing. On 23 November 2018, a workday in a villa in Son Vida ended fatally for a 61-year-old bricklayer. Now, years later, the court in Palma has spoken: six months in prison for the responsible contractor.

How it happened

That morning, around 10 o'clock, the craftsman indoors attached a cladding to a column near the front door on Carrer Mossa. To mount a heavy access barrier, colleagues placed a construction prop diagonally between the door and the floor. The structure could not withstand the load: the door — reportedly weighing about 544 kilograms — collapsed, struck the worker and caused a severe traumatic brain injury. He underwent emergency surgery and died four days later in hospital.

Shortcomings on the construction site

Investigators found significant deficiencies: no clear task assessment, no written work instructions, no prevention trainings, and apparently missing protective equipment. After the indictment, the entrepreneur finally admitted negligent actions. Before the trial he paid the relatives 45,000 euros as compensation — an amount that is comforting but does not undo the loss.

The court considered along with the guilty plea also a delayed proceedings, which is why mitigating circumstances were cited. Because the parties had reached an agreement beforehand, the verdict was issued promptly. In the courtroom there was also a discussion about whether the concluded insurance covered the fatal accident.

What remains

I warn colleagues in the construction industry: Too often clients save at the wrong places. A helmet costs little, a clear risk assessment and a brief safety briefing take hardly longer than a coffee break, but save lives. In Son Vida a person lost their life — and two families are still affected today.

The punishment has been imposed, but for many the question remains whether such incidents can be prevented in the future. Construction site inspections, binding protection concepts, and a genuine safety culture are not bureaucracy but responsibility. Let us hope this case at least wakes things up a little.

PS: Those who work in the industry know: You see each other on the construction site — and no one wants to miss a colleague there.