The city's fire marshal said the explosion and fire occurred in an area where the company cleans tanks used for fracking, or oil filed fracturing. The two workers are said to have suffered serious burn injuries and were taken to a medical center in nearby San Antonio for treatment.
]]> The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the state fire marshal and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality will all be investigating the incident.According to OSHA records, the company has already been cited for 17 serious violations after unsafe conditions were discovered for workers who clean the tanks. If more safety violations are found at the plant, it is possible that the company could face serious OSHA fines as well as personal injury lawsuits brought by the workers who were injured.
In the wake of the accident, residents are wondering if they are safe in their homes. A woman who lives across the street from the plant said she looked out her window and saw a "big ball of fire." She said everyone in the area was evacuated from their homes shortly thereafter. They were allowed to return to their homes about 90 minutes later, she said.
Another woman, who lives across the highway from the plant, said she hopes an accident like this doesn't happen again. But explosions are not the only thing residents in the area are worried about, she said. The plant also brings in many semi-trucks that make travel on nearby Highway 80 dangerous, she said.
Source: KSAT, "Explosion, fire stirs up Nixon residents' fears," Katrina Webber, May 16, 2012
]]>Unlike traditional workplace injury lawsuits where workers must prove that the employer knew or should have known that a dangerous workplace condition existed, maritime workers can sue their employers under a strict liability theory. This means the worker only has to prove that the ship or vessel was unsafe and that he or she was injured as a result.
]]> This difference is spelled out in federal laws protecting maritime workers, such as the Jones Act. In a recent Jones Act lawsuit, a maritime worker sued his employer after falling from an unstable ladder and sustaining injuries. The plaintiff was working as a deckhand aboard the M/V Born Again at the time of the accident.According to the lawsuit, the worker was helping to tie-off of two empty barges and a crane barge while standing on a stepladder propped up against one of the empty barges. Apparently, the ladder came loose, causing the worker to fall to the deck of the crane barge. The worker states that he struck his lower back on a steel bit on the deck of the crane barge, leaving him seriously injured.
In the lawsuit against American Tugs and Molly Lee Towing, the worker charges that the defendants were negligent by ordering the crew to work in unsafe conditions. More specifically, the worker says that the defendants negligently failed to provide adequate equipment aboard the vessel and failed to provide adequate personnel to perform the barge tie-off operation. Other acts of negligence were cited in the lawsuit as well.
The worker is seeking an unspecified amount of damages for physical pain and suffering, mental pain, suffering and anguish, medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, disfigurement and disability, loss of enjoyment of life, maintenance, cure, interest, court costs and attorney's fees.
Source: The Louisiana Record, "Seaman sues after falling off of unstable ladder," Michelle Keahey, May 8, 2012
]]>Two years ago on a wet spring day, the Knickerbocker, Texas, resident came in contact with a 7,200-volt electric charge while inspecting a barn roof. The shock nearly took the man's life and he spent about two months in a medically-induced coma because of the pain caused by the burns.
]]> Fortunately, the man survived, but he lost both of his hands above the wrists. The man was fitted with prosthetic devices and soon began rehabilitation to learn how to use them. Formerly a contract welder, cowboy, hunting guide and cook, the man asked his doctor how his new hands would limit his life.The man said his doctor replied that he could get back to his core trades, "but it would require new ways of going about them." After a lot of hard work, the man said that his doctor was right. He is able to do most of the same things he did before, although he admits that everything takes a little longer.
The man said he can saddle his mules and horses, unlatch combination locks when guiding a hunt and is still an excellent cook. He also performs welding work for a trucking company in Mertzon.
Above anything, the man said, the experience has taught him patience. He said re-learning how to do everything from walking to using his new hands been "a project in progress and will be for some time to come." The man also credits his wife of 35 years with most of his accomplishments.
Workplace accidents are often life-threatening, but thankfully they don't always have to be life ending. Do you know of anyone who was injured on the job and made a valiant recovery?
Source: San Angelo Standard-Times, "Near-death experience teaches man a life lesson," John Gill, May 9, 2012
]]>However, the woman in this case was born a man, and because of that, her benefits were denied. A Wharton County judge voided the marriage between the transgender woman and her husband last year before denying benefits. The judge's reasoning was that the state of Texas does not recognize same-sex marriage. A contested-case hearing officer also denied the woman widow's benefits in November 2011.
]]> With the help of her attorney, the woman has disputed the denial of benefits in a lawsuit against the City of Wharton, which is a self-insured carrier providing workers' compensation to city employees. She claims that Texas has a backwards view when it comes to the rights of transgender people."If you were born a man, you are always a man ... that's the law in Texas right now," the woman's attorney said.
The woman, who underwent sexual reassignment surgery the same year she was married to the volunteer firefighter, will next appeal her case to the district court. The woman's attorney said that they are prepared to take the case "all the way." She said that they are "fighting for all transgender people in this state."
Source: Courthouse News Service, "Transgender Widow Seeks Benefits," David Lee, April 27, 2012; ABC News, "Texas Transgender Widow Sues for Husband's Benefits," Susanna Kim, April 30, 2012
]]>Workers compensation benefits are available to most workers who are injured in accidents on the job or suffer from work-related illnesses. The benefits are intended to cover medical costs and lost wages stemming from the injury or illness.
]]> Even though most employers throughout the United States are required to purchase workers' compensation insurance, not all workers are covered, including agricultural workers, domestic workers and independent contractors. This is something that you want to be aware of before you accept a job.Additionally, not every incident that leaves a worker injured on the job is considered a "workplace accident" for purposes of workers' compensation. There has to be a link between the injury or illness and the job.
For example, if a random person opens fire on an office building, injuring several workers, the workers likely wouldn't be entitled to benefits because the incident had nothing to do with their work. However, if the office was owned by a debt collection company and the shooter was a disgruntled debtor, the workers could have an argument that they are entitled to benefits.
Workers' compensation laws also vary from state to state. This is because states have the ability to set their own guidelines and standards with regard to workers' compensation. For example, the maximum workers' compensation benefit for lost pay in Texas is $725 a week, while it could be much higher or lower in other states.
Please check back next week for more important information on workers' compensation benefits.
Source: STL Today, "10 Things to Know About Workers' Compensation," Dona DeZube, May 1, 2012
]]>Sadly, many TxDot highway workers haven't been as lucky over the years. According to data from the state's transportation department, 100 people were killed in work zone accidents in 2010, including workers and people in cars. In the Houston area, there were 2,800 work-zone accidents at construction sites that left 21 people dead.
]]> Recently, an event was held in Houston to commemorate National Work Zone Awareness Week, which is a yearly campaign sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration. TxDot workers gathered in their orange vests in front of a monument listing the names of the 24 highway workers from the Houston-area who were killed on the job since 1951.A Harris County sheriff who spoke at the memorial said that most people don't realize that all highway workers have to protect them is "a flimsy cone, a simple barricade, a sign." He said that highway workers risk their lives every day on the job. The Houston police chief added that simple mistakes are costly in work zones.
"People don't realize how just trying to change the station on your radio, or making a call on your cell phone, or exceeding the speed limit can change someone's life instantly by having a fatal crash," he said.
The purpose of National Work Zone Awareness Week is to persuade drivers against driving dangerously through work zones. If the safety of highway workers isn't enough to convince drivers, they ought to know that traffic fines can be doubled in work zones, even if there is no accident.
Source: Transportation Nation, "100 Died in Texas Work Zone Fatalities in 2010," Gail Delaughter, April 25, 2012
]]>In a recent op/ed article in the Houston Chronicle, the woman described how her father's accident was the result of a willful violation of safety regulations on behalf of BP. Her father and two co-workers had been standing on scaffolding working on a water pump when the seal on the pump abruptly ruptured.
]]> The three workers, who together had more than 70 years of job experience, suffered horrible burns to much of their bodies, the woman said. Unfortunately, two of the men did not survive, including the woman's father, who died 10 weeks after the incident.The woman said that the Occupational Health and Safety Administration conducted an investigation after the accident and fined BP with $109,500 for seven "serious" safety violations and one "willful" safety violation. She said an OSHA director called her father's accident "a tragic loss of life that could have been avoided, if OSHA standards had been followed."
The woman said that the next year, a massive explosion at the BP Texas City refinery killed 15 workers and injured many more. The woman said that her father's employer had more than 20 workplace fatalities over five years, and an investigation determined that the company's safety program was inadequate.
The purpose of the woman sharing her father's story was to raise awareness on the importance of OSHA and its regulations. She said OSHA needs to be given more authority, not less, to make sure employees in Texas and the rest of the United States are able to return to their families after a day's work.
Source: Houston Chronicle, "Let's honor workers who lost lives on the job," Katherine Rodriguez, April 20, 2012
]]>Unfortunately, a construction worker was killed last week in the Dallas-area after being struck by a large forklift. The accident occurred on Wednesday at the construction site for a new hospital in Parkland. Officials said the 24-year-old worker was hit by the large piece of equipment, also known as a lull, as it was moving forward.
]]> Following the accident, an internal investigation reportedly took place and the next morning workers held a 20-minute "standdown" as a tribute to the fallen worker and a reminder to put safety first while on the job.The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has also been called in to investigate the accident, which could take up to six months to complete. The OSHA inspection will look for safety violations that could have contributed to the accident.
"The investigator or investigators will go to the site, they will interview employees and witnesses, they will inspect the equipment and talk to anybody on the site," an OSHA spokesman said.
Depending on the cause of the accident, it may be possible for the family of the worker who was killed to sue the employer or a third-party in a wrongful death lawsuit. This would require that the accident was the result of an unsafe work environment or other negligence on behalf of the employer or a third-party.
Source: Dallas Business Journal, "OSHA investigating Parkland construction death," Bill Hethcock, April 20, 2012
]]>This means that the worker needs only to show that the vessel was unseaworthy and the accident occurred as a result, rather than having to show that the employer knew or had reason to know of the unsafe condition. In these cases, injured workers can be compensated for past and future medical expenses, lost wages, lost future earning capacity and other related damages.
]]> Last year, a Texas worker aboard a dredge vessel filed suit against the vessel's owner after he seriously injured his back when he fell out of his bunk bed. The worker, who was a deckhand, said the accident was the result of inadequate lighting on the ship, which the ship owner was responsible for.The ship owner recently responded to the lawsuit by alleging that the accident was the result of negligence on behalf of the deckhand, who the ship owner said failed to exercise proper care and caution for his own safety. The ship owner also stated that any risks on the vessel were visible and obvious.
The former deckhand is seeking damages for past and future medical expenses, mental anguish, pain, impairment, disfigurement and lost wages, in addition to all court costs. However, first the worker must convince the judge or jury that the vessel was in fact dangerous or unseaworthy.
Source: The Southeast Texas Record, "Defendant says plaintiff to blame for falling out of bed," David Yates, April 18, 2012
]]>Recently, a Texas company called Magnablend Inc. was cited with seven serious safety and health violations after an October 2011 chemical fire led to an OSHA investigation at the company's blending plant in Waxahachie. The proposed penalties amount to $45,000 in total.
]]> According to a report from OSHA's Fort Worth Area Office, employees at the plant were exposed to fire hazards because the facility had an inadequate ventilation system. OSHA explained that the company also failed to meet several other safety requirements, including training workers in specific hazardous chemical protection procedures.In all, the company was cited with seven serious violations, which are defined as causing a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
An OSHA spokesman said that simply installing an adequate ventilation system would have protected workers from fires, like the one that occurred in October 2011. Luckily, no one was injured in that fire, but workers certainly could have been.
OSHA reminds employers that under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers have a duty to provide a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. Employers who fail to meet OSHA's safety and health standards could end up paying hefty fines to OSHA, as well as damages in personal injury lawsuits brought by workers who have been injured.
Source: OSHA Regional News Release, "US Department of Labor's OSHA cites Magnablend for serious violations following chemical fire at Waxahachie, Texas, facility," March 30, 2012
]]>In August 2010, an electrician working for ExxonMobil at its Beaumont, Texas, refinery was severely burned in a flash fire that consumed the entire area in which he was working. The worker had to be immediately flown to a Texas hospital for treatment, and luckily, he survived.
]]> Two months after the workplace accident, the injured worked filed a personal injury claim against ExxonMobil, alleging that the company negligently failed to provide a safe environment for its employees. Although the lawsuit does not describe how the fire started, it alleges that ExxonMobil is responsible for failing to inspect and maintain its premises.The worker is asking for an undisclosed amount of damages for past and future mental anguish, pain, medical expenses and lost wages.
Earlier this week, the judge on the case ordered the parties to attend mediation in effort to settle the personal injury claim. A mediator was appointed, and the negotiations will take place in May.
Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution that has gained popularity over the past decade. The goal of mediation is for the parties to reach a settlement on their own, without having the case be decided by a judge or jury.
Mediation is praised for its ability to save money as well as its ability to give the parties more control over the process and outcome of the case. Of course, mediation doesn't work in every case. Sometimes, an impasse is reached and the case must go back to the judge.
Source: Southeast Texas Record, "ExxonMobil ordered into mediation with flash-burned plaintiff," David Yates, April 12, 2012
]]>On Friday morning, two Texas construction workers were hurt at a road construction site near Hurst when they were struck by a crane bucket while many feet off of the ground on top of a bridge support pillar. Both men had to be rescued from several stories above the ground.
]]> One of the men was said to have been seriously injured and had to be strapped to a backboard and lowered to the ground by a second crane bucket. He was rushed by air to a local hospital for treatment. The other worker, who only received minor injuries, was taken to another local hospital by ambulance.It is likely that there will be an investigation to determine the cause of the accident, and if any safety violations are responsible. No matter what the cause of the accident may have been, it is likely that both workers will be entitled to workers' compensation benefits for medical bills and lost wages resulting from the accident.
Depending on what state they live in, workers may be required to report their workplace injuries to their employers and file certain forms within a certain time frame to start receiving workers' compensation benefits. It's also important to remember that disputed claims can be appealed through administrative proceedings and judicial proceedings.
Source: Fox Dallas-Fort Worth, "2 Construction Workers Hurt," Kevin Boyle, April 6, 2012
]]>One worker suspected that too much weight was responsible for the accident, as the drill was attempting to life pipe from a "tight hole." The worker said that accidents like this are typically the result of a "driller error" of behalf of rig operators. However, he said that a problem like a "stress crack" on the derrick could also have been responsible.
]]> It is likely that an investigation will take place to determine the exact cause of the rig collapse. One worker at the site reported a shoulder injury stemming from the accident. Because the injury occurred on the job, it is likely that the worker could be entitled to workers' compensation benefits to cover medical bills and lost wages stemming from the injury.With workers' compensation benefits, it does not matter what the cause of the accident was or who was to blame. However, workers in Texas who pursue workers' compensation claims forfeit their right to sue their employer for negligence relating to the accident. On the other hand, it is still possible for these workers to pursue negligence claims against third parties.
When it comes to workers' compensation benefits, it's important to report the incident to a supervisor right away and fill out the proper forms, depending on what state you live in. Additionally, be aware that there is only a certain window in which benefits claims can be filed following the incident.
Source: Upstream Online, "Pistol Drilling rig collapses in Texas," Luke Johnson, April 5, 2012
]]>Recently, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released a report indicating that there are obvious safety benefits to the speed-limiting technology. After evaluating data collected from 20 carriers over three years, researchers concluded that there is a "profound safety benefit for trucks equipped with an active [speed limiter]."
]]> The study found that between 2007 and 2009, the overall crash rate for trucks without speed-limiting devices was higher than the crash rate for trucks equipped with the speed-limiting devices. Researchers said that while the regular trucks had a crash rate of 16.4 crashes per 100 trucks per year, trucks equipped with the speed-limiting technology only experienced 11 crashes per 100 trucks per year.In 2006, the American Trucking Association reportedly asked the National Highway Safety Administration to order all commercial motor vehicles manufactured since 1992 to be equipped with speed limiters. The president of the ATA said he hopes the findings of this study help to convince regulators of the importance speed-limiting technology serves.
There is no doubt that many trucking accidents in Texas are caused by truck drivers who are exceeding the speed limit and either lose control of the truck or are unable to stop before slamming into another vehicle. It appears that this speed-limiting technology could save lives in Texas and elsewhere.
Source: TruckingInfo.com, "New Study Finds Safety Benefits of Limiting Truck Speeds," March 29, 2012
]]>Last week, a Houston construction worker narrowly escaped death when the trench he was working in collapsed, burying him waist deep. The accident occurred Thursday night as the worker was attempting to connect water and sewer lines in a 20-foot deep trench.
]]> After the collapse, emergency crews were called to the scene and were able to dig out the worker. The worker was taken to a local hospital with what appeared to be leg injuries. There have been no other details released on his condition as of yet.The reason for the trench collapse has also not yet been reported. It is likely that officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will conduct an investigation to determine if safety violations at the job site contributed to the collapse. If this is the case, the construction company could face hefty fines.
It is also possible that the injured worker could sue the construction company for damages if it is determined that negligence on behalf of the employer contributed to the trench collapse. In alternative, the worker could likely collect workers' compensation benefits to cover medical bills and lost wages.
In Texas, injured workers have the option to either sue their employers for negligence or collect workers' compensation benefits, but not both. However, it is possible for an injured worker who is receiving workers' compensation benefits to sue a negligent third party for damages.
An example of a negligent third party would be the manufacturer of a defective product that contributed to the accident. Under Texas law, claims such as this must be filed within two years of the workplace accident.
Source: KWTX.com, "Texas Worker Rescued After Trench Collapse," March 23, 2012
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