Construction Site Injuries and Fatalities
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that as of March, 2014, there are 5,964,000 Americans working on construction jobs. This is very good news for the job market and the economy, but it also means that more people are working at one of the most dangerous jobs in the country.
Every year the industry reports approximately 150,000 accidents, causing and an average of 1000 deaths and an untold number of injuries.
Four Most Frequent Causes of Construction Injuries and Deaths
Four common types of accidents in the construction industry cause a majority of injuries and deaths. In the industry, they’re known as “the fatal four:”
- Falls, the number one cause of construction accident injuries. Structural steel workers have the highest incidence of falls, and roofers are also at especially high risk. Instability of scaffolding, ladders, and roof structure, as well as excavations and unmarked drop-offs are among the causes.
- Caught-in/between accidents, those where a worker is trapped or crushed between objects. Cave-ins, being pulled into heavy machinery, being crushed by a hydraulic bed or trapped between two moving objects or between one that is moving and one that is not are all examples of this type of construction accident.
- Being struck by a moving vehicle, construction equipment, or object falling from a height
- Electrocutions from faulty tools and equipment, exposed wires, power lines, extension cords, etc.
Injury Types that Commonly Occur in Construction Work
This is a partial list of some common types of construction accident injuries that we frequently handle at Wettermark & Keith, LLC:
- Spinal cord injuries, often resulting in tetraplegia or paraplegia
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Serious burns
- Internal organ damage to lung, kidney, spleen, liver, etc.
- Facial injuries, including eye injuries, nose injuries, jaw fractures or dislocations, facial scarring, and dental
- injuries
- Broken bones
- Death
If you or someone close to you has sustained injuries in an Alabama construction accident, you should waste no time in consulting the personal injury attorneys at the Huntsville, Alabama, law firm of Wettermark & Keith, LLC. We bring to the table more than 30 years of combined experience representing construction accident victims and have obtained millions of dollars in compensation for our injured clients.
Workers’ Compensation
As with other on-the-job injuries, illnesses, or deaths, you will usually look to Workers’ Compensation for benefits covering medical expenses, lost time from work, cost of rehabilitation services, or if the injury was fatal, a death benefit. You don’t have to show who was at fault to receive Workers’ Comp benefits, only that your injury occurred on the job.
Potential Third Party Claims for Larger Recoveries
Workers Compensation is limited; it does not compensate you for your suffering, disability, disfigurement, or loss of enjoyment of life. Although you won’t be able to sue your employer if you’re covered by Workers’ Compensation, your attorney may be able to identify some third party whose negligence contributed to your being injured and who can be held liable.
At the Huntsville law firm of Wettermark and Keith, LLC, we have a history of successfully handling construction site injuries and fatalities. We have experts available to help investigate accident causes to determine if a third-party can be found liable, possibly a sub-contractor, engineer, property owner, architect, or manufacturer of a defective tool or other piece of machinery. We feel that you should be compensated for all of your damages, and we have the knowledge and the resources to make that happen in many construction site injury cases.
Passion, Commitment, and Aggressive Pursuit of Justice at Wettermark & Keith, LLC
Our dedicated personal injury attorneys are deeply committed to fighting for justice for the injured and for survivors of fatal construction site accident victims. If your life has been torn apart because of someone else’s wrongdoing, call us today. We will perform a free case review of the facts and circumstances surrounding your accident and will advise you of your legal options.
The time to file a personal injury claim is limited by Alabama law, so don’t risk losing your right to a recovery; act now by calling Wettermark & Keith, LLC, to safeguard your right to recover monetary compensation for your construction accident damages.
