LANSING - Construction fatalities in Michigan fell to 24 in 2002 - a welcome drop of four compared to 2001 - according to information compiled by the state Department of Consumer and Industry Services.

Over the last five years, construction worker deaths have ranged from a low of 23 in 2000 to a high of 34 in 1997. And from 1990-1997, an average of nearly 23 Hardhats died on the job.

As is the case in the great majority of years, in 2002, falls were the biggest cause of fatalities, claiming eight lives

"One of the things that our program is focused on is fall protection," said MIOSHA Construction Safety Division Chief Rick Mee. "The biggest single difference we could make in saving lives of construction workers is to get the falls under control."

Mee said state construction safety inspectors write more violations of the state's fall protection standard than for any other transgression.

The year 2002 was typical in that the second-leading cause of death was electrocution, followed by struck-by incidents.

Mee said about 80-90 percent of MIOSHA Construction Safety Division investigations consist of unannounced, "proactive" inspections. He said reactive responses to jobsite accidents tend to take place when employers have already corrected the problem. MIOSHA currently has 16 construction safety inspectors on staff, and will soon be hiring two more.

MIOSHA was started up in 1974, and it has saved lives in the construction industry. In the 1960s, an average of 44 Michigan construction workers were killed on the job every year.