A 17-year-old steel fabricator has fallen 12 metres to his death at the Old Post Office redevelopment site in the CBD.
St John Ambulance got an emergency call at 4.30am and took the boy as a Priority 1, with lights and sirens, to Royal Perth Hospital, but he could not be saved.
A WorkSafe spokeswoman said the boy was on night shift and was working on the installation of a glass ceiling in the building, which was being renovated for the new tenant, fashion retailer H&M.;
WA Police coronial investigators and WorkSafe investigators were at the cordoned-off site on Forrest Place, near Wellington Street, early in the morning. They are likely to remain for at least the rest of the day.
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"It is with great sadness that we confirm a fatality involving a sub-contractor occurred this morning," an H&M; spokeswoman said.
"Our sincerest condolences are with all those impacted and our thoughts are with the family. We are awaiting further information and are cooperating with WA Police."
The boy was employed under contractors for Sydney-based interiors construction company Valmont, which also offered its full cooperation to investigators.
"The directors of Valmont are profoundly saddened," a spokesman said.
"At this delicate time their sincerest thoughts and prayers are with the family of the young man, his friends and co-workers."
The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union WA also has officials on site and expects to gain access to conduct an investigation later on Thursday.
"It is sad to report on another construction site death in WA so early into the New Year," said Mick Buchan, state secretary of CFMEU WA.
"His death follows a spate of fatalities in the latter part of 2016 which was the catalyst for a National 'Black Arm Band Day' silent protest.
"Prior to this latest tragedy we saw the death of Marianka Heumann who died falling down a lift shaft at the Concerto site in Adelaide Terrace.
"The CFMEU would like to remind all workers to stay safe, especially after returning from the holiday season and working in extremely hot conditions. We will comment further once more details come to light."
Analysis of 2015 statistics shows that construction is the third-most dangerous industry or group of industries in WA in terms of workplace fatalities.
The most dangerous category, responsible for nearly half of all fatalities, were agriculture, forestry and fishing. Next was transport, postal and warehousing, followed by construction, then manufacturing, with mining coming fifth.
Last year in WA, a 33-year-old scaffolder died from falling 20 metres from HBF Stadium in Mount Claremont; 32-year-old Landsdale fitter Lee Buzzard died at Rio Tinto's Channar iron ore mine; a man in his 50s died at Central Norseman Gold Mine; and a Western Power worker died while restoring power to the fire-ravaged South West town of Waroona.