Scaffold Fall in Carmópolis de Minas: The Urgency of NR 18

Improvisation on construction sites remains one of the largest mortality factors in the Brazilian civil construction sector. On the afternoon of Tuesday, July 7, 2026, a severe accident in the Aparecida district, in Carmópolis de Minas (MG), resulted in the tragic deaths of two workers, aged 49 and 35. The splitting of a wooden plank supporting an improvised scaffold restarts an urgent debate on technical compliance with NR 18 and NR 35.

The Incident: Wooden Scaffold Collapse in Bairro Aparecida

The accident occurred at a construction site in the vicinity of Praça José de Souza Morais, at the intersection of Formosa and Orides Pinheiro streets. Two workers were performing external renovation tasks when the improvised wooden scaffolding platform they were standing on collapsed. One of the main planks cracked in half, causing the workers to fall freely from a significant height.

One worker, aged 49, suffered fatal injuries and was declared deceased at the scene. The second worker, aged 35, was rescued in critical condition by SAMU (Mobile Emergency Medical Service) and transported to Santa Casa de Carmópolis de Minas, but did not survive and died shortly after admission.

The Military Police isolated the scene, and Civil Police forensic investigators were called to evaluate the mechanical failure. The construction managers and contractors face investigation to determine civil and criminal liability for the incident.

What NR 18 Mandates for Scaffolding Safety

Regulatory Standard No. 18 (Safety and Health in the Construction Industry) establishes strict guidelines to ban the use of improvised or non-certified scaffolding. Improvised wooden scaffolding is strictly prohibited due to the unpredictable structural decay and stress limits of non-engineered timber.

Under NR 18 regulations, any suspended or fixed scaffolding must meet the following safety criteria:

• Engineering Project: The scaffolding system must have a detailed technical design drafted by a legally qualified engineer with a formal Technical Responsibility Note (ART).
• Metallic Structure: The main support frame must consist of durable steel or aluminum materials equipped with mechanisms to prevent accidental tilting or swaying.
• Secure Work Platforms: Scaffolding floors must be slip-resistant, level, gap-free, and fitted with toe boards of at least 15 cm at the outer edges.
• Independent Safety Line: Workers must be anchored to vertical safety lines (lifelines) completely separated from the scaffold scaffold frame, arresting falls if the platform collapses.

Redundancy as the Boundary Between Life and Death (NR 35)

NR 35 (Work at Height) emphasizes that no worker should rely on a single barrier for fall protection. The failure of the wooden plank was the immediate cause of the scaffold collapse in Carmópolis de Minas, but the primary factor of the fatalities was the **lack of an independent fall arrest system**.

Even if a scaffold completely caved in, had the workers been secured to an independent lifeline via a full-body harness and a fall arrester, they would have remained suspended safely in mid-air until rescue, as demonstrated in a separate rescue incident in Chapecó (SC) on the same day.

Collective Fall Protection netting (EPC) in Construction

Beyond personal protection, installing **safety catch nets (EPC nets)** underneath work areas provides a critical secondary safety barrier. According to the European standard EN 1263-1 (and ABNT NBR 16046 regulations in Brazil), safety nets are designed to arrest falls of workers and tools within up to 6 meters of fall clearance.

Using certified safety nets prevents human errors or mechanical failures from resulting in high-impact ground collisions.

Legal Liability and Compliance in Construction Renovation

The Ministry of Labor has intensified enforcement against non-compliant construction sites. Brazilian case law establishes **joint liability** (responsabilidade solidária) between the main contractor and any subcontractors executing the tasks. Building owners can also be held civilly liable if negligence in safety audits is established.