Fourchon Suction Dredger Accident Lawyer
Much of the State of Louisiana, especially the area around Fourchon, is surrounded by river deltas, marshes, and inlets. These serve to make commercial shipping and fishing one of the State’s largest industries. As a result, the need to maintain existing navigable waterways, and even to create new ones, is essential to the state’s economy.
One of the common methods by which waterways are maintained is by using a ship with a powered pump to pull material off the bottom of the body of water to increase its overall depth, also known as dredging. This involves a highly technical and often dangerous set of steps that can place workers on dredging boats in significant danger.
If you are injured while working on a boat, you have the right to hire a skilled maritime attorney and demand compensation. It does not matter if the injury was your fault or not, as federal maritime law allows anyone injured while working on a boat to demand compensation directly from their employer. A Fourchon suction dredger accident lawyer could help you demand this compensation on behalf of yourself and your family.
Workers’ Compensation vs. Maritime Injuries
The vast majority of workers in Fourchon and throughout the United States are protected by workers’ compensation laws. These laws require employers to purchase a workers’ compensation insurance policy that pays injured workers for the medical costs associated with a treating a workplace injury and offers them payments for any lost earnings. In return, this policy also protects employers by prohibiting any lawsuit for compensation from being filed directly against them following an on-the-job incident.
However, maritime workers are not covered by workers’ compensation laws. Instead, they are protected by federal maritime law. Specifically, 46 U.S.C. §30104, known as the Jones Act, allows workers who are injured while working on a boat that travels navigable waters to directly sue their employers in United States District Court or in state court venues. In the event of a suction dredger accident in Fourchon, lawyers must help potential clients file this suit within three years of the incident.
Typical Compensable Injuries on Suction Dredgers
Suction dredgers are dangerous places to work. These vessels combine all the hazards of working on any large boat with the problems inherent in any heavy manufacturing occupation. A worker may be asked to repair machinery, move heavy boxes, operate the suction apparatus, or drive the boat, often in all sorts of weather and on a moving platform.
As a result, it is not uncommon for employees to suffer injuries that include:
- Sprains to ligaments or tendons
- Separated joints
- Spinal cord injuries from twisting or falls
- Cracked skulls from blows to the head
- Amputations from heavy machinery
- Drowning from falling overboard
Any of these incidents can be the basis for a personal injury lawsuit under the Jones Act. These lawsuits can demand compensation for not just the medical costs associated with making a recovery, but also for any economic losses and emotional trauma. A Fourchon suction dredge accident lawyer could work with potential clients to help them fully understand the impact their injury had on their life and demand appropriate compensation.
Speaking with a Fourchon Suction Dredger Accident Attorney
Safety should be of paramount concern at any job. However, when that job combines the use of heavy machinery with the unpredictability that occurs on the water, catastrophic injuries are unfortunately common. Whenever that incident results in an injury to a worker, the owner of the vessel can be held civilly liable.
A Fourchon suction dredger accident lawyer could represent injured workers and their families in federal lawsuits under the Jones Act in state or federal court. They could work with you to quantify the injuries you suffered on the job and the full impact that the incident has had on your life.
Whether your case is settled for a satisfactory sum or litigated all the way through federal court, a dedicated maritime attorney is ready to fight for you. Call today to schedule a consultation and discuss your case.