NEW ROCHELLE, NY — In an incident that is certain to raise questions about safety with the on-going construction boom in New Rochelle an unidentified man died this afternoon after he was electrocuted at 164 Union Avenue in the West End of New Rochelle
According to New Rochelle Police Captain Cosmo Costa, at about 2:28 pm, New Rochelle Police and New Rochelle Fire Departments were called to the scene of The Craft building, a six-story, 75-unit mixed-use building at the corner of Union and Webster avenue on the former site of Battaglia Brothers deli.
“Subsequent investigation revealed that the worker, while in a Cherry Picker performing exterior work on the Building, accidentally struck high voltage wires,” said Costa. “The worker sustained fatal injuries.”
The man’s identity is not being released at this time.
The New Rochelle Fire Department made notification to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration.
There has been some controversy with the project, overseen by Lou Iacopetta of Quintessential Land Development, after local residents complained the developer was not hiring local residents. There have been allegations that illegal aliens were hired to work on the construction project, according to sources at City Hall.
UPDATE 2/13: New Rochelle PD has released the name of the man who died: Alejandro Manuel Caisaguano Pellisa, 26, of the Bronx, NY.
UPDATE 2/13: The New Rochelle Buildings Department is also conducting a follow-up investigation.