Death May Arrive at Worksites in Unusual Ways Says Austin Personal Injury Lawyer
Jul 19, 2011
Austin, TX (Law Firm Newswire) July 18, 2011 – Construction sites can be dangerous places. This story about a woman, killed by falling equipment on a construction site, is an example of safety issues and their deadly consequences.
“In this instance, a 58-year-old woman was struck and killed by metal scaffolding that fell off a forklift. Although someone on site who saw the falling metal structure called out to warn her to move, she was unable to get out of the way fast enough. Although she was alive when she got to hospital, she died shortly after arriving,” said Robert W. Lee, a personal injury attorney of The Lee Law Firm in Austin, Texas.
This reported case did not indicate if the woman was a construction worker or a passerby. The distinction would be that if she were a worker, she would likely not be able to sue her employer if she was receiving workers’ compensation, but may be able to sue a third party contractor. “If the woman was not an employee working at the location, her family would likely be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit,” Lee said.
As it turned out, the police report indicated that the woman was working for a subcontractor for a circus company, which was renting the arena where the accident took place. OSHA indicated it would be launching a workplace investigation to find out if safety precautions were followed and why the scaffolding fell off the forklift. The answers to those questions may well indicate what level of negligence there was present when this woman was killed.
“These are tough cases, and usually very complex, largely due to the potential number of people involved in such a suit. Those would range from insurance companies to contractors and from other workers to sub-contractors. Certainly, these are not cases that are quickly resolved, as there is an enormous amount of evidence to sift through and the degree of fault on whose part also needs to be sorted out,” said Lee, the Austin personal injury lawyer.
Typically, accidents that happen on construction sites end up being devastating for the worker involved, largely because they may not be able to sue their employer. Take the case of a man so badly burnt on the job that he would never be able to live a normal life again, and would be dogged by pain every day from the burn scars. He could not sue his employer as he received compensation. His only recourse was to try and sue the maker of the valve that let go and sprayed him with scalding oil.
“If you have been in a situation like this, or injured on the job, don’t think that you have no options, because there are ways to help you. That is what I am here for and would be pleased to talk to you about your case. It’s my mission to help you get compensation that you deserve, and I am well known to go the extra mile for my clients. I look forward to talking to you,” Lee said.
To learn more, visit Austin personal injury attorney and http://www.rwleelaw.com.
The Lee Law Firm
11824 Jollyville Road, Suite 302
Austin, Texas 78759
Phone: 512.478.8080
