Posted on August 24, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

California residents may be following the story of a gas explosion that injured three people at a Bronx high school. Workers were installing a new science lab when the accident took place at about 8 p.m. on Aug. 20. The accident occurred when a worker used a lit match to see if gas was going through the line as designed.

There were seven workers from a construction company at the school at the time of the accident. Three of the workers had serious burn injuries, and all seven were taken to area hospitals. The explosion caused damage to the 4th, 5th and 6th floor of the school with the 6th floor suffering the most damage.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the school would not be able to open on time, but that all students would be placed at nearby schools. An area assemblyman said that no one was going to be allowed back into the building until it was safe to do so. It is believed that some rooms on the 7th floor of the school suffered structural damage in the wake of the explosion.

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 Posted on August 20, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

Workers in manufacturing and other industries in California and throughout the United States will receive additional support in the prevention of certain types of serious workplace injuries. Specifically, the Occupational Safety Health Agency has recently issued an updated version of its National Emphasis Program directive on amputations.

OSHA's directive calls on employers to better identify and work to eliminate serious hazards in the workplace. The directive targets general industry workplaces where machinery is present that is likely to cause amputations. These industries include machine shops, bakeries, sawmills, meat processing plants and other manufacturers of food products. Data reported to the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate these industries have the highest rates of amputations among workers.

Data from 2013 reveals that 2,000 workers suffered an amputation that year, with the manufacturing sector experiencing a rate of amputations more than double that of all private industry. According to OSHA, this sector had an amputation rate of 1.7 per 10,000 full-time employees in 2013, whereas private industry overall had only 0.7 amputations per 10,000 employees.

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 Posted on August 13, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

Although railroad companies are required to upgrade safety technology by the end of 2015, only three companies have filed formal plans to do so. The new technology upgrades are to involve positive train control, which is designed to automatically slow or stop trains when necessary via GPS as well as radio and computer software. Advocates hope that the technology can help prevent accidents due to trains traveling at unsafe speeds or into areas where crews may be working.

One such advocate is the National Transportation Safety Board, which has lobbied for such technology for more than 45 years. It believes that PTC would have prevented 145 crashes, which would have saved 300 lives and avoided 6,700 injuries. However, some railroad companies say that they have experienced unanticipated problems that have made it difficult to comply with the new rules.

Despite not being one of the companies that has submitted a plan for government approval, Amtrak says that it will have PTC available on its Northeast Corridor by Dec. 31. BNSF Railway, Metrolink and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority are the three railroads that have submitted plans. BNSF is the second-largest freight railroad in America while Metrolink and the PTA are commuter lines in Los Angles and Philadelphia, respectively.

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 Posted on August 11, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

California workers may be interested in a series of mining industry fatalities that occurred in a single day across the country. These deaths have prompted one government agency to step up its enforcement and education activities in order to prevent further harm.

On Aug. 3, three mine workers in three different states were killed in workplace accidents. One work accident victim, an 18-year-old at a Virginia quarry, was buried beneath tons of stone and sand when a silo on the job site collapsed. The other incidents took place in South Dakota and Nevada. This is the first time that this many incidents have occurred on a single day since 2002.

The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration is increasing its enforcement of safety regulations in the wake of these three deaths. This will include more facility inspections, concentrating on particular violations that are commonly associated with mining fatalities. Additionally, the agency will put more effort into educating the industry on the dangers that these violations can present. This includes having inspectors on the ground and at the job sites, educating miners and site operators first-hand about the potential for serious and fatal accidents, along with how to prevent them. A spokesperson for the MSHA points out that these efforts will require cooperation industry-wide.

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 Posted on August 06, 2015 in Truck Accidents

California residents may have read the national news reports about a person who was killed after a dump truck slammed into an overpass in New Jersey on Aug. 4. According to a state police captain, the truck was traveling on the New Jersey turnpike when it collided with the Wood Avenue overpass at about 10:30 a.m.

The crash occurred in the southbound lanes of the turnpike. The truck overturned and its driver was killed. The accident also caused a fire to ignite, and authorities closed both lanes of the turnpike until it could be determined if the overpass's stability had been compromised. Additionally, gas and power lines were also compromised. The traffic reportedly became backed up for miles and some of the lanes were expected to be closed until midnight.

Because trucks are much larger than other types of vehicles, an accident involving one is likely to leave people with serious injuries. In some cases, the injuries could be severe enough to result in death. If a person was killed in a crash caused by the negligence of a truck driver, the surviving family members may want to consider filing a wrongful death lawsuit.

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 Posted on August 01, 2015 in Truck Accidents

California drivers should always be aware of large trucks on the road, especially those transporting liquid loads. These vehicles are subject to special hazards the general public may be unaware of, and they are the topic of several myths about the conditions that can give rise to an accident. Understanding these myths and the actual causes of cargo tank rollovers can perhaps help to reduce the incidence of these accidents.

Contrary to popular belief, cargo tank rollover accidents are not commonly associated with speeding, nighttime driving, unsafe road conditions or lack of experience behind the wheel. Statistics compiled by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration based on 2007 data reveal that most of these accidents occur during the day, on exit or on-ramps and straight roads, with commercial drivers who have more than 10 years of experience. Speeding is a factor in only about 28 percent of all cargo tank rollover accidents.

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 Posted on July 30, 2015 in Car Accidents

An outing among friends turned tragic on July 18 as four of eight women in a limousine were killed when the vehicle collided with a pickup truck. California residents may have heard about this accident that took place in Long Island, and the Suffolk County District Attorney said the crash may have happened because the driver of the truck had consumed alcohol earlier in the day.

The accident occurred when the pickup slammed into the limo that was attempting to turn at an intersection by making a legal U-turn, and the speed of both vehicles is currently unknown. Both drivers suffered injuries, and the four women who survived the crash all reportedly received serious injuries. The district attorney commented that the women in their early 20s did the right thing by hiring a limo since they were touring a winery, and a chemical test revealed that the limo driver had no alcohol in his system.

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 Posted on July 28, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

Iron workers in California perform some of the nation's most dangerous jobs. While doing construction work on multi-story buildings, these professionals are at a great risk of falling. To protect them from workplace injuries and deaths, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration has fall protection standards that must be followed by employers.

OSHA standards for fall protection apply to all workers who perform tasks at least 15 feet above ground level. These workers must be protected with guardrails, safety nets, fall restraints, positioning devices and personal fall arrest systems. Despite these requirements, OSHA regularly cites construction employers for fall protection violations, and falls are among the leading causes of death and injury on construction sites. While employers are obligated to follow OSHA guidelines at a minimum, they are also advised to recognize hazards and develop their own policies for maintaining worker safety.

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 Posted on July 13, 2015 in Workplace Accidents

Employees in California may benefit from learning more about the issues associated with emergency response, hazmat identification and control. One of the most critical tasks to complete in a catastrophic accident involving hazardous materials is to determine the chemical compounds involved in the incident. Addressing errors in the chain-of-custody process may be one of the most effective strategies for improving how these accidents are managed. Railcars, tankers, containers and trailers are all significantly affected by the integrity of the controls within the global supply chain.

Current technology can help enterprises deploy hazmat railcars, containers and trailers that are equipped with container security devices, or CSDs. Making these conveyances and containers smart with more recent tech applications can help provide more precise evidence about details concerning the contents or the shipping. The evidence is often accessible by using an app on a smartphone or another similar device.

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 Posted on July 13, 2015 in Car Accidents

On the night of July 7, it was reported that a vehicle slammed into a California Donut King shop after being involved in a two-car accident. The reported stated that five people were ultimately taken to a nearby hospital. One of the victims taken to the hospital, a 30-year-old female, later died as a result of her injuries.

The accident occurred at the intersection of Western and Marine avenues in Gardena at around 7 p.m. The impact caused one of the vehicles to crash into the structure. The donut shop was reportedly open when the incident occurred, but no one in the store suffered any injuries as a result of the crash.

No matter how serious a motor vehicle accident is, there is always the possibility that those involved could suffer serious injuries. These could include whiplash, broken bones and damage to internal organs.

In order to seek compensation for damages that they incur in a car accident, the injured victims must demonstrate that they did not cause the crash. A personal injury attorney may attempt to make a determination as to culpability by examining police accident investigation reports as well as obtaining witness testimony. If it subsequently appears that the accident was caused by a distracted, impaired or otherwise negligent driver, it may then be advisable to file a personal injury action on behalf of the injured victim against the responsible party that would seek compensation for the damages that have been sustained.

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