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Roof crew members injured in collapse
By JENNIFER FARRELL, Times Staff Writer SPRING HILL -- It was supposed to be a quick job for some extra cash over the holidays. But the first day of work proved treacherous Wednesday for a construction crew from Brooksville -- all relatives -- when roofing materials they were installing on a planned pain management clinic on Mariner Boulevard collapsed, sending two brothers and their three nephews to the hospital. "One of the trusses broke and it all collapsed," said Benigno Rojero. "I was up there too, but I jumped." Rojero said his brothers Antonio and Gerardo, 34 and 42, were airlifted to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, along with his nephews, Jose Martinez, 20, and Rafael Rojero, 28. Another nephew, Manuel Rojero, 28, suffered a hand injury and was taken to Oak Hill Hospital, he said. Rescue workers said the men suffered multiple broken bones and teeth, while one of Manuel Rojero's fingers was severed in the accident at the corner of Mariner and Bali Lane. Bayfront officials said the men taken there were still being evaluated late Wednesday, but their condition was listed as "non-life-threatening." Oak Hill officials declined to release Manuel Rojero's condition. According to Benigno Rojero, the men were helping frame the concrete-block building's roof, installing wooden trusses with the help of a crane. All five were standing among the trusses, securing them, when one broke, toppling the others. John Carter of Brooksville was also working at the site Wednesday afternoon. He heard the noise, then looked up. "I saw it snapping at the bottom," he said. Rojero said he and his family had a week off from their regular jobs at Brooksville-based Nichols Masonry Inc., so they decided to help with the roofing project as a way to make some extra money. Representatives of Tampa-based Precise Construction, the firm putting up the building, did not return a call for comment Wednesday. -- Staff writer Jennifer Farrell covers Spring Hill and can be reached at 848-1432. Send e-mail to farrell@sptimes.com.
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