New Hampshire tied with Vermont for the second-lowest job fatality rate nationwide, with only 15 deaths this year, according to the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organization's annual report, which was released in honor of the Workers Memorial Day. Seven of the 15 deaths occurred in transportation accidents, three in falls and five were unclassified. This decline in the rate of fatalities from 3.1 to 2.1 per 100,000 workers comes as the national average rose from 4.0 to 4.1 fatalities per 100,000 workers.
The report also studied violations for Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations; the average number of violations in New Hampshire is slightly higher than the national average.
Miss America 1995 Heather Whitestone McCallum, who is deaf and frequently raises awareness on behalf of deaf individuals' rights, spoke with early interventionist specialists and local educators at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Tuesday afternoon. More than 12,000 babies are born with a form of hearing loss in the United States each year. McCallum discussed the emergence of newborn hearing screening, early intervention and advanced technology options that have given deaf children the ability to develop better age-appropriate communication skills. Dr. Glenn Johnson of DHMC, two children with cochlear implants and approximately 115 other attended the event.
Following an investigation of the incident, Attorney General Kelly Ayotte and Hanover Police Chief Nicholas J. Giaccone, Jr. announced last Friday that the death of Kevin Descoteaux did not involve a crime. On January 17, 43-year-old Descoteaux died at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center after sustaining a blunt trauma wound to the head that resulted from a fight Descoteaux started with fellow AA&D construction worker Robert Hanna. Descoteaux and Hanna were staying at the Chieftain Motor Inn while working at a site in the area. The incident was not declared a homicide because the force of Hanna's punch was classified as non-deadly. Descoteaux's fall to the ground after the hit was deemed the direct cause of death.
