Georgia Injury Law Blog

Sugar Refinery Explosion Report Says Fire Entirely Preventable

At the time, it was one of the worst industrial disasters in the country, and the most devastating Georgia Workers' Compensation lawyers had seen in decades. When combustible sugar dust at a refinery near Savannah ignited and exploded last year, it set off a blazing fire that razed much of the facility. Fourteen 14 workers at the Imperial Sugar Refinery were killed and 36 injured, many of them severely burnt. Now, the Chemical Safety Board has issued its report on the accident, and the agency's findings are a damning indictment of the plant's managers and owners.

According to the report, there were several factors that were to blame for the explosion, and all of them were entirely preventable. Poor maintenance, improper equipment design and substandard housekeeping were at the root of the explosion and fire. Worse, according to the report, managers were aware about the dangers of an explosion from combustible sugar dust, but failed to take measures to prevent the tragedy. In fact, the sugar industry had been aware of the dangers of sugar dust igniting and setting off an explosion and fire, as far back as 1925.

The Chemical Safety Board report says the Savannah explosion most likely occurred inside a conveyor that had been enclosed. The enclosed conveyer created a small confined space where sugar dust accumulated, generating conditions that were ripe for a dangerous explosion. When Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officials conducted an inspection after the tragedy, they found that in some places, sugar dust accumulation was up to four feet deep.

In July, last year OSHA proposed that a fine of $8.7 million be imposed on Imperial Sugar, which has appealed the fine.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

A fire at the Equinox Chemical Plant in Albany has left one person severely burnt. The flash fire occurred on April 15^th. 37-year-old Jason Pate suffered second and third degree burn injuries over up to 70% of his body. He was taken to the Augusta Burn Center where his condition has been listed as critical.

According to preliminary investigations, Pate was operating chemical machinery when two gas kit seals suddenly ruptured, due to pressure. That caused the manifold system to blow off the Acetylene, igniting and sparking a fire. The company has shut down production, pending an investigation of the accident. Firefighters remained at the plant all night to ensure that all Acetylene tanks were empty, and there was no danger of fire. 

Fire safety is imperative in a chemical plant where the risk of fire and explosions is always present. Burns that result from a chemical fire are severe, leaving long term scars. These burns are extremely painful, and cause significant tissue damage. In cases that are as severe as Pate's case here, skin grafting may be necessary. All this means many days away from work while the body heals enough to allow for skin graft surgery, as well as a long healing period later.

Second and third degree burns are the most serious levels of burn injuries. While in a first degree burn, only the first layer of skin is damaged, in a second degree burn, two layers of the skin are burned. Blisters form, and the skin has a shiny, wet looking appearance. The skin also has a deep red color, and is painful. In a third degree burn, all layers of the skin are damaged, and there is damage to tissues too. Here, the burnt areas will be red and swollen, and the person will be in severe pain. A patient can quickly go into shock, and skin will be charred or white. These burns take a longer time to heal. Even with skin grafts and treatment, these burns may leave behind permanent scaring.  The skin in the burnt area may not recover its normal function ever.

The recovery period involved in a burn injury increases with the percentage of the body that has been burnt. A person with more than 50% burns on his body has a higher risk of fatality, and if he survives, has a much longer road to recovery.

Georgia Worker Compensation Attorney

Georgia’s Worker Compensation laws allow for compensation to an injured worker which can cover the cost of his medical expenses, including expenses that may come up in future. For instance, in burn injuries, as the skin continues to heal and change in appearance, there may be the need for more reconstructive surgeries to restore the appearance of the skin. This will involve additional costs.

If you have questions about Worker's Compensation rights, an experienced Georgia Worker's Compensation attorney can help you find the answers you need.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

Construction sites are some of the most dangerous work places, with the industry occupying 3^rd place in the number of work-related fatalities every year. Most of these accidents are completely preventable, if only employers make provisions for proper training of workers and adequate safety measures. In one such preventable accident, a construction foreman in Cartersville, Georgia was killed earlier this month in a trench collapse accident.

James Hilbish was working in the trench as part of a sewer line installation on the 4^th of February when the cave in occurred. The trench was reportedly 30 feet in depth, and at least 25 to 30 feet in length His body was found more than 3 hours later.  Hilbish worked for an Alabama company which had subcontracted the job from the Bartow County Water Department. No other injuries were reported in the accident.

A trench collapse is one of the most dangerous of all accidents on a construction site. The process of heaping mounds of soil on top of the trench walls can lead to the wall becoming weak and unstable.  Besides, the soil that's piled high on the walls can quickly shift under provocation, and began to pour into the trench within seconds. When this happens, any workers inside the trench are at risk for death by suffocation. In most cases, attempts to rescue workers can be extremely difficult because of the speed with which such collapses occur. Rescue attempts are also made more dangerous by the fact that disturbing the soil further can trigger off more cave-ins. That’s why these accidents so often result in fatalities.

Atlanta Worker's Compensation Attorney

Although trench work is dangerous in nature, employers can take steps to prevent a collapse. Precautions must be taken to stock the excavated soil away from the mouth of the trench, so that the soil, which can weigh tons, does not pose a hazard to the workers in the trench. Workers must also be provided ladders or some other protection systems through which they can make their way out of the trench in the early signs of a cave-in.  Unfortunately, very often, employers fail to take adequate safety precautions in an effort to cut costs. Injured workers may seek the help of an Atlanta Workers Compensation attorney to help recover damages for their injuries. In case of a worker's death, his family can file a lawsuit with the help of a Georgia wrongful death lawyer to recover funeral costs, lost wages etc.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

A Richmond County worker has been killed in a crane accident at an International Paper wood yard facility. A press release by the company has said that Bill Drake was killed on February 2^nd at the plant's facility on the Mike Padgett Highway. Drake was engaged in clearing wood debris on the tracks when he was struck by the metal cage of the crane. He died at the scene of the accident.

Drake worked as a crane operator, but that particular morning, he had been assigned the task of clearing the tracks.   As per normal procedures, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration has initiated investigations into the accident. The company seems to have no record of accidents at the plant over the last five years. However, it has been subjected to inspections twice because of complaints. The first inspection resulted in fines for both minor as well as more serious violations, while the second inspection conducted last year did not yield any violations. An investigation by OSHA will likely take months, and it wouldn’t be possible to draw conclusions about the causes of the accident before the findings are out. There are several questions that can be raised about the accident though – for instance, who was operating the crane at the time of the accident? Was it a trained and qualified crane operator? Did Drake receive warnings while he was engaged in the debris clearing work, alerting him to possible danger from the crane? 

Very often, workplace accidents are the result of inadequate safety precautions followed by employers as well as other workers at the scene of the accident. Employees need to be properly trained to handle the tasks they are performing, as well as a safe working environment where all safety precautions are followed stringently.

Employees who have been injured in a workplace accident are eligible for a package of compensation benefits under Georgia's Workers Compensation laws that may include compensation for economic losses like medical bills, physical rehabilitation expenses, medication costs etc. In case of the death of a worker, his family may be entitled to compensation under wrongful death statutes. Here, damages recovered may include funeral and burial expenses as well as wage payments made to the survivors of the deceased over a specified period of time. For obvious reasons, it serves employers best to have to pay out as few benefits as possible. That's why it's important to discuss your situation with a Georgia Workers Compensation attorney before agreeing to a benefits package offered by your employer.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

Clarke County School District has been struggling with rising costs that have been traced in part to an increase in the number of Worker's Compensation claims the district has been forced to pay out. These benefits amounted to $1.6 million last year alone, and now, administrators are looking at a whole new approach to cutting down costs.

The district has set up a district wide committee for supervision of safety measures implemented in schools to reduce the number of injuries and accidents that result in Worker's Compensation claims. 20 smaller committees have also been established. Each school committee will have the responsibility of conducting investigations into all accidents that occur on the premises, and give the school principal a report on how best to avoid such accidents in the future. Teachers and employees often tend to be injured breaking up student fights, or as a result of slip and fall accidents on the school premises. Many of these injuries can be prevented if there are adequate structural and management changes made in these schools, and that’s what the Clark County school district seems to be aiming at. Improving safety on school premises is being seen as a preferable way to cut costs instead of cutting down on important school programs, the district says.

Georgia Worker's Compensation Claims

An employee in Georgia who is injured in the workplace is eligible for a package of benefits under the Worker's Compensation Act. To avail of these benefits, an employee doesn't have to prove negligence on the part of the employer. Besides, Worker's Compensation benefits, employees may also be eligible for personal injury compensation from third parties who may have been responsible for the injury, like companies that are responsible for building or maintaining the premises etc.

No matter what the size or nature of the injury, it's always best to consult with an experienced Georgia Worker's Compensation attorney before you settle a claim. Employers always prefer to have to pay out as little in claims as possible, and this works to your disadvantage. If you have been injured in a workplace accident, contact the Worker's Compensation attorneys at the Katz Law Firm for a free consultation.  

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

More than two weeks after the construction accident at the Atlanta Botanical Garden that killed one worker and injured 18 others, the last worker who was still receiving treatment for his injuries, has been discharged from the hospital.

That means all of the workers who were injured are now back at home, many still facing the prospect of extensive physical rehabilitative therapy to regain their strength.   Since the collapse of the pedestrian walkway at the Garden on December 19, doctors have treated workers with injuries ranging from fractures, to spinal and brain injuries. Fortunately, there have been no spinal cord injuries that resulted in paralysis. At The Shepherd Center, where doctors treated at least half a dozen victims of the collapse, all the workers were able to walk out of the facility.  Fortunately, there have been no spinal cord injuries that resulted in paralysis.

The accident occurred when workers were pouring concrete on the walkway, billed as the only one of its kind in the country. The bridge suddenly collapsed, toppling all workers standing on the bridge, more than 40 feet to the ground below.   One worker, Angel Chupin was confirmed dead in the initial minutes after the accident. The collapse has raised questions about the stability of the under-construction pedestrian bridge, and the kind of priority given to the security of workers who were on the bridge. In the days after the accident, we have also learned that Hardin Construction, the company that was overseeing construction work at the walkway, has had a worker die in an accident in 2001, when his head became trapped between a ceiling and platform at a construction site. The concrete company that was overseeing the pouring of the concrete on the walkway has also had a worker death in the past due to a truck malfunction.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is conducting investigations into the accident at the Garden, but it will be months before we find out the level of negligence that may have caused the structure to collapse the way it did.

Construction Accidents

Fall accidents are some of the most common ones that occur in the construction industry. Unstable, poorly constructed scaffolding, the absence of guardrails to protect from a fall, and poorly designed platforms can all contribute to workers falling from elevated positions, and sustaining severe traumatic injuries. Fortunately, workers are covered under Georgia's Worker's Compensation laws that provide for reimbursement of medical bills, lost wages and other expenses in the event of a workplace accident.

If an employer delays compensation to the worker, denies it, or pays out lesser than is due, then an Atlanta Worker's Compensation attorney can help the employee obtain the compensation he deserves.  In addition to Worker's Compensation which can often be insufficient, a worker can hire an Atlanta personal injury lawyer to file lawsuits against other parties that may have been responsible for the accident, including manufacturers of defective equipment, architects and engineers who were responsible for the design of the structure, or in this case, the concrete company that had been hired for the pouring of the concrete. 

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink

Two sugar refinery workers died over the weekend from the February 7^th explosion at the Imperial Sugar Plant in Port Wentworth, Georgia.  That brings the total number killed in this workplace accident to 11.  Twelve remain in critical condition at Doctors’ Hospital in Augusta, Georgia.  Two are in serious condition.  Over forty workers were injured and released from treatment. 

The explosion occurred Thursday night around 7:30 p.m. when plant workers were packaging refined sugar into Dixie Crystal bags.  Investigators believe the blast was caused by the accumulation of sugar dust in a basement area beneath the plant’s storage silos. Sugar dust is combustible. While the cause of the ignition is not yet known, stacked and dry sugar could create a static electric charge that could have ignited.

The explosion was so powerful that neighbors thought a bomb went off.   Floors inside the plant collapsed, flames spread throughout the building, metal girders buckled, and sheet metal corridors connecting the plant buildings gave way.  Molten sugar burned at more than 4000 degrees.  Fire crews worked through the night and for several days following to put out the flames.  Doors to the plant were glued shut by crystallized sugar sludge.

Dust explosions in industrial plants have killed more than 120 workers over the past three decades.  Most accidents are preventable by removing fine dust build-up.  The U.S. Chemical Safety Board, which investigates industrial chemical accidents, recommends that OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) issue a comprehensive combustible dust standard.  To date, OSHA has not done so.

Imperial Sugar is one of the oldest and largest employers in South Georgia.  The plant sits on a 160-acre site along the Savannah River.  The plant consists of a warehouse, three silos and several eight-story buildings connected by sheet metal corridors.  The Port Wentworth facility turns raw cane sugar into crystal sugar.  The plant opened in 1917 and retains much of the original tongue and groove hardwood flooring that contributed to the blaze.  Imperial is based in Sugar Land, Texas.  It acquired Dixie Crystal Sugar in 1997, making it the largest processor and refiner of sugar in the United States.  In 2007 Imperial Sugar reported $360 million in assets.

Generally, when you have been injured in a workplace accident, you are entitled to workers compensation benefits.  The amount of recovery, however, may be more limited than in a personal injury claim against a third party.  However, workers injured while on the job are entitled to no-fault benefits, meaning proof of the employer’s negligence is not required.   

Workplace accidents can cause serious injuries.  If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident while on the job, contact the law firm of Robert N. Katz for a free, personal consultation.  One of our workers’ compensation attorneys may be able to help you in your claim.

Posted By Lisa Siegel In Workers Compensation | 0 Comments Permalink