An ironworker is fighting for her life after she was electrocuted while working on the Long Island Rail Road. According to an NBC New York news report, the incident occurred the morning of March 13 at the Mineola train station. Crews were putting up a pedestrian bridge over the tracks when a crane came into contact with high voltage wires.
Electrocution Injury
MTA officials said the contact with the high voltage line created an arc to the
bridge that seriously injured the worker who was on the structure at the time. She was admitted to the intensive care unit and was listed in critical condition. NBC reports that the ironworkers’ union sent a letter to MTA following the incident requesting a stoppage on work to ensure adequate safety practices are implemented. The union has also asked for a disclosure of any recent incidents involving third-party contractors.
The head of the union said that they want to make sure the jobsite is safe for workers. All ironworkers have been pulled off the job at Mineola train station while the MTA conducts a full investigation.
The Dangers of Electrocution
According to statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 5,333 workers died on the job in 2019 and about 20% of the worker fatalities that occurred in private industry in 2019 were in construction – accounting for one in five worker deaths that year. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) lists electrocution as one of the “fatal four” – and as the top cause of construction accidents – followed by falls, struck-by and caught in/between accidents.
Electrocution refers to death or injury by electrical shock from exposure to dangerous amounts of electrical energy. Electricity typically flows through conductors such as wires and power lines to create a path and complete a circuit. The human body acts as a conductor when it comes into contact with electrical current, usually from touching exposed electrical wires or damaged equipment, etc.
In construction work, electrocution can occur from contact with power lines or contact with energized sources such as faulty equipment or exposed wires. When cranes are operated near power lines, the utility company should be contacted to de-energize and ground the lines in order to avoid the possibility of electrocutions.
Types of Injuries
Here are some of the most common types of injuries suffered in electrical accidents:
Entrance and exit wounds: An entrance wound occurs when an electric current enters a person’s body. The current then flows through the body until finally exiting where the body is closest to the ground. The exit wound is seen where the electric current exited the body.
Thermal contact burns: These are burn injuries that are caused by the electrical current. In some cases thermal contact burns may occur when the person’s clothes catch fire as the electrical current exits his or her body.
Internal injuries: Electrical accidents may also result in serious damage to internal organs, depending on the nature and circumstances of the accident.
Contacting a Construction Accident Lawyer
Construction workers who have been injured in electrocution-related accidents may be eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits, which covers medical expenses and a portion of lost wages. In addition, workers may also be able to file a third-party claim against a negligent (careless) party other than the employer or co-employees for significant monetary damages and have two sources of compensation available for their losses. Examples of third parties include, but are not limited to, general contractors, construction companies, sub-contractors, building owners, managing agents etc.
If you have suffered injuries in a construction-related accident, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
Our law firm recovered $3,375,576 for a construction worker (an undocumented immigrant) who was injured on the job – one of the highest construction case settlements in New York that year. Our law firm also recovered $3,000,000 for a man who fell and suffered two broken legs when he walked into an open elevator shaft. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and/or medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
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1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
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Source: https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/ironworker-shocked-on-lirr-construction-site-critically-injured-ny-only/2942252/