Burn Injuries are not Always Caused by Fire According to Workplace Injury Lawyer

Burn injuries are not always the result of a fire. Workplaces are fraught with various ways to get badly burned.

Austin, TX (Law Firm Newswire) October 12, 2010 – Surprisingly enough, burn injuries are not always the result of being burned by open flames or electricity. Many other burns happen as a result of things going wrong in the workplace. In fact, burns affect at least 1 million people very year; most of which are sustained on the job, according to Austin personal Injury lawyer, Robert W. Lee.

Workplace burn injuries tend to happen in a variety of ways. For instance, anyone who works in an industry that uses fire to produce a product or to destroy a product is at risk for sustaining burns. Metalworking companies are prime locations for burns, since the materials they work with are melted down at exceedingly high temperatures to be molded into something new. While instances like this do involve open flames, other burn injuries don’t come from fire.

There are many other materials that have the potential to cause burns when they come into direct contact with the skin. Chemicals and acids may actually be even more dangerous than fire when direct exposure to the skin is involved. There are also some pharmaceutical companies that use highly caustic chemicals with deadly potential.

“If workers are not properly trained on how to handle these chemicals and are not provided with the mandatory safety gear, there may be problems. Injured workers should seek counsel to recover compensation” advised Austin personal injury attorney, Robert W. Lee.

Skin burns, acid ingestion, and breathing in chemicals – all these things result in burns to various parts of the victim’s body. Inhaling dangerous chemicals burns the throat lining and the lungs; a pain so excruciating, the victim requires immediate medical attention. Whether the burn sustained was from flames from a fire, electrical shock, acid or other chemicals, the cost to treat these kinds of injuries is significant. It’s very rare that treating burns is a simple affair. Most cases are complex and require skin grafts and many years of surgery. The victim may never look the same again.

Generally speaking, it is the employer’s responsibility to provide all employees with a safe workplace, provide them with training on how to handle various dangerous chemicals/materials, make sure they are equipped with the proper safety gear, ensure fire protection procedures are in place and have clear and precise evacuation plans in the event of a fire.

To learn more, visit Austin personal injury lawyer and Austin personal injury attorney, http://www.rwleelaw.com.

The Lee Law Firm
11824 Jollyville Road, Suite 302
Austin, Texas 78759
Phone: 512.478.8080