Personal Injury Law

Construction Worker Dies As a Result of Equipment Malfunction

By Kirk Bernard, Esq.

A recent news article reports that a 53-year-old Washington construction worker was killed when he and another employee were installing an electrical line at a shopping center. The accident happened when their bucket truck failed. The worker was thrown from the bucket and struck the truck. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Washington State construction site accidents have the potential to result in debilitating injuries or even death. Where serious or catastrophic injuries are involved, construction workers and their families come under tremendous emotional and financial strain. In many cases, families lose their primary wage-earner or sole breadwinner, which puts them in quite a tough predicament. Still, the fact remains that a majority of Seattle construction site accidents, which lead to such tragedies, can be easily prevented and avoided by following safety standards. Sometimes, these tragedies are also caused by defective products and equipment malfunctions. Equipment failure can happen because of a manufacturing defect or because it was poorly maintained. If maintenance is the issue, the injured worker or his family could file a claim against the contractor or sub-contractor in charge of maintenance. If the malfunction was caused by a product defect, the worker or his family can file a third-party claim against the manufacturer of the defective product.

Full post as published by Seattle Injury Blog on January 25, 2010 (boomark / email).