Houma Barge Accident Lawyer
Federal maritime law, particularly the Jones Act, commonly provides legal rights to seamen who are injured in barge accidents on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River, or an inland waterway of Louisiana. Whether an injury takes place on a sectional barge, a liquid mud barge, a deck barge, a keyway barge, a tank barge, a spud barge, a shale barge, or in a barge fleeting accident, an injured person could have the same legal rights under the Jones Act. Reach out to an experienced Houma barge accident lawyer and begin researching different legal strategies that could benefit your case.
A barge accident injury can be severely incapacitating and inflict serious damage to a person’s health. Someone who was injured in such an accident could face significant challenges moving forward. However, a person who suffered an injury following a barge accident could be eligible to pursue compensation. A seasoned maritime injury lawyer can examine your case and the circumstances that may have surrounded it. Allow an attorney who understands maritime injury cases to assist you.
How is a Barge Accident Defined?
Working on towboats and barges is often considered perilous by seamen and Houma barge accident attorneys alike. The American Waterway Operators estimates that annually, numerous deckhands and other crew members die while hundreds suffer grievous brain injury, back injury, head injury, and traumatic injury in accidents related to tugboats, barges, and other flat-bottomed ships.
Under the Jones Act, seamen who are injured on a barge are generally legally entitled to seek compensation for negligence directly from the vessel operator or owner in accordance with federal maritime law. This differs from other types of jobs in Houma, which typically require injured workers to depend on workers’ compensation insurance and may prohibit them from filing suit against their employer.
What are Potential Causes of Barge Accidents?
Collisions with locks and docks, bridges, equipment failure, barge breakaways, fires, miscommunication, explosions, and groundings may all lead to grave barge accidents and severe injuries. Conversely, the crew and deckhands aboard a barge might suffer catastrophic head or spinal injuries due to a fall through a hatch or by falling on to a lower deck.
It is also possible that crew members may be crushed or pinned between objects. Deckhands and seamen might get hit by heavy equipment or a moving object as a result of miscommunication while working on a barge.
Inadequate training and improper maintenance often cause a majority of accidents aboard older vessels. It is typically the legal duty of the barge owner to ensure that the vessel is seaworthy and to provide a workplace without known dangers. If any maritime accident which is directly attributed to an employer’s carelessness or negligence occurs, an injured party could potentially sue for compensation with the assistance of a skilled Houma barge injury attorney.
Speak To a Houma Barge Accident Attorney Today
You may be legally entitled to pursue compensation under federal law if you are employed as a rigger, deckhand, or barge worker following an accident. Talk to a Houma barge accident lawyer who is familiar with workers’ rights under the maritime law. They can potentially help you pursue compensation for your damages and therefore work to hold reckless parties accountable. Call today to get started.