Opinion
April 19, 1996
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Jefferson County, Gilbert, J.
Present — Pine, J.P., Wesley, Balio, Davis and Boehm, JJ.
Order unanimously reversed on the law without costs, motion denied and cross motions granted. Memorandum: The State of New York hired third-party defendant, Weatherguard Roofing Company (Weatherguard), to replace the roof of the Dulles State Office Building in Watertown. Arthur F. Mitchell (plaintiff), a Weatherguard employee, was injured when he fell from a pile of debris onto the roof surface, a distance of 3 to 4 feet. The debris was stacked next to a cable machine, and plaintiff had stepped onto the debris in order to reach the pull cord on the machine's motor. Supreme Court erred in granting partial summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs on the Labor Law § 240 (1) cause of action and in denying the cross motions of defendant and Weatherguard for summary judgment dismissing that cause of action. The injury did not result from the "special hazards" related to the effects of gravity where protective devices are required because of "a difference between the elevation level of the required work and a lower level" ( Rocovich v. Consolidated Edison Co., 78 N.Y.2d 509, 514; see also, DePuy v. Sibley, Lindsay Curr Co., 225 A.D.2d 1069; Colopy v. William C. McCombs, Inc., 203 A.D.2d 920).
Because Labor Law § 240 (1) does not apply to plaintiff's injury, it is unnecessary to reach the issue whether defendant is an owner within the meaning of that section.