Worker dies after falling from beam at Cedar Rapids construction site

CEDAR RAPIDS - A man who was seriously injured Monday when he apparently fell from a beam at a downtown construction site died Monday night, the Cedar Rapids Police Department said Tuesday.

Michael Dean Patterson, 47, of Norwalk, was working at a construction site in the 200 block of Second Avenue SE when he fell, according to public safety spokesman Greg Buelow. Emergency personnel responded to the area about 2:25 p.m. and found him lying in an alleyway.

Patterson was taken to UnityPoint-St. Luke's Hospital with life-threatening injuries and was pronounced dead by the Linn County Medical Examiner's Office later that evening.

He worked for Architectural Wall Systems, a contractor on the project for United Fire Group's building renovations.

Police do not suspect criminal liability, however, the fall will be investigated by the employer and likely by the Iowa Division of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

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