Posted December 28, 2009

By: Chris Wagner, KHASTV.com

A Nebraska teenager is dead after being hit by a snow removing machine in a school parking lot early this morning.

According to police, 19–year–old Christopher Johnson was struck by the pay–loader after he went to talk to the vehicle’s driver and slipped on the ice. Johnson then fell under the snow remover.

He was pronounced dead at Columbus Community Hospital.

Johnson was working with the company clearing the snow for the school at the time.

Posted December 11, 2009

By Boston.com

The state’s highest court has upheld workers’ compensation coverage for a Peabody High School teacher who was injured in a skiing accident on a field trip.

The Supreme Judicial Court, in a four-page decision written by Justice Judith Cowin, says it concluded that a teacher acting as a chaperone on a school-sponsored activity is “acting in the course of her employment.”

The city of Peabody had claimed that Karen Sikorski, who injuried her shoulder in a fall, was not entitled to workers’ compensation because she was voluntarily participating in a recreational activity during the 2004 ski trip.

Posted November 12, 2009

The Clarion Post

A Warren County jury has awarded $7.6 million to a former sandblaster who developed severe silicosis.

The verdict is the first silicosis case to go to a jury in Mississippi.

Robert Eastman sandblasted for about 25 years at Marathon Letourneau in Vicksburg and used Mississippi Valley Silica Co. Inc.’s sand from 1963 until 1978, according to his lawsuit.

“Mr. Eastman suffers from progressive pulmonary massive fibrosis as a result of severe silicosis,” said Tim Porter, one of Eastman’s attorneys. “There was substantial proof put before the jury that Mississippi Valley Silica Co. Inc. knew that using sand while while abrasive blasting caused the incurable, deadly progressive disease silicosis.”

Mississippi Valley Silica is expected to appeal.

Silicosis is an incurable, sometimes fatal lung disease caused by inhalation of silica, the primary ingredient in sand and most rocks.

By Holbrook Mohr – The Associated Press

Published October 1, 2009

JACKSON, Miss. — International Paper Co. has settled another federal lawsuit stemming from a 2008 explosion that killed a contract worker at a Mississippi plant and injured nearly two dozen others.

Cases involving several injured workers are still pending.

The most recent case to settle was closed Tuesday by U.S. Magistrate John M. Roper. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed. At least three other federal lawsuits ended in settlements in September. The terms of those deals were also sealed.

The explosion killed 28-year-old Marcus Christopher Broome and injured 22 others at International Paper’s Redwood plant on May 3, 2008. The plant, about 30 miles west of Jackson, cooks fiber to make liner board, which is used for manufacturing corrugated containers.

Several workers were left with serious burns or other injuries when a 12-story recovery boiler exploded as workers tried to restart it after annual maintenance.

“The manner in which the recovery boiler was brought on line at the Redwood plant was extremely reckless and in complete disregard for the welfare of everyone working on and around the boiler that day,” said Billy Quin, an attorney for plaintiffs in several cases.

“We believe that these lawsuits and the settlements that have been reached to date have caused International Paper to overhaul the safety standards associated with the startup of recovery boilers at all of its plants,” Quin said Wednesday during a phone interview. “We can only hope that the remainder of the industry will take notice and follow suit.”

Among plaintiffs in the pending lawsuits are brothers Darren and David Clark, both contract welders from Mooresville, N.C.

The Clark brothers’ lawsuit, among other things, claims International Paper recklessly ignited the boiler when it was filled with combustible gas.

International Paper spokeswoman Amy Sawyer said Wednesday that the company doesn’t discuss litigation and wouldn’t reveal the terms of the settlements. In addition to the criminal cases in federal court, a lawsuit is pending in Warren County Circuit Court.

Sawyer has said the company works “very hard to ensure the safety of everyone at our mill every day.”

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined IP $77,000 in the months following the explosion for two alleged violations. For one, OSHA said IP started the boiler without adequate steam.

The agency also said in its report that there were no written procedures to determine if enough odorant was being added to the natural gas supply line. The odor is a needed additive so workers know when the highly volatile gas is present.

By ELIZABETH BANICKI

LOS ANGELES (CN) – Three ski patrolmen died at a volcanic vent at Mammoth Mountain ski resort, and two of their families say the United States is to blame for failing to warn about the fumarole and the poisonous gases that escape from it.

The three men died in April 2006 when they fell 21 feet into a volcanic fumarole in a snow collapse at Mammoth Ski Resort, according to an article in Mammoth Local, the online version of Mammoth Monthly magazine.

John McAndrews, 37, James Juarez, 35, and Walter Rosenthal, 58, died. The families of McAndrews and Juarez are plaintiffs in this Superior Court complaint.

McAndrews and Juarez were working with fencing around the well-known fumarole area, a giant vent in the mountain that was buried under snow. But the men did not know that steam spewing from the fumarole had created a cavern filled with poisonous gas beneath them, according to the magazine.

When McAndrews and Juarez fell through the snow into the cave, Rosenthal tried to help, but died in the process.

Poisonous volcanic gases can cause death in minutes. Other patrolmen tried to help, but were overcome by the gas.

The McAndrews and Juarez families say the federal government, which leases the property to the ski resort, negligently failed to protect the men.

“The United States and its employees have known since at least the early 1980s of a hazardous condition which is present at the ski area. Specifically, the Ski Area, as improved, is located on an inactive volcano,” the complaint states.

Each family seeks $10 million in damages for wrongful death, negligence, and premises liability. The United States is the only defendants.

The families are represented by Christian Juarez.

             Did you know that workers who are injured in the course of their employment have two possible sources of compensation for their injuries?    

            The first is a worker’s compensation claim.

            Suppose you are an over-the-road truck driver.  You live in West Virginia.  Your company is based in Arkansas.  You were hired in Virginia.  You were involved in an accident in New Jersey.  Do you know where you would bring a claim for workers compensation benefits?  Not many people do.  This can be a real puzzler even for an attorney, if he isn’t experienced in workers compensation claims.

            Workers compensation claims can be incredibly complicated and the compensation you receive could vary from state to state.  It is important to know where you can bring a claim and the best state in which to make your claim. 

            Suppose the workers comp doctor says you can go back to work?  You know your own body.  You know what hurts.  Does the doctor even care?  After all, he is being paid by your company’s insurance carrier. 

            Secondly, an employee injured in the course of his/her employment may also have the right to seek monetary compensation from a third party who may have been responsible for the injury.  For instance, if you are an employee driving on the job and you  are injured due to the negligence of another driver, you could make a claim against that negligent driver.

            If you are injured in the course of your employment, you need advice from an attorney who specializes in workers compensation and you need it now!  You can’t afford to wait until your company denies your claim or says you are better and can return to work when you know you aren’t. 

            Our firm has been representing the victims of work related injuries for over 25 years.  If you or a member of your family have been injured at work, I invite you to fill out an online consultation form or engage in an online chat. 

            Good, bad or ugly, tell us what you think of this blog!