Products Liability – Industrial accidents

Black Lung Disease

At the age of 48, an arrow crafter began to experience progressive shortness of breath. The crafter had been involved in running an archery store for many years and later began to cut carbon-graphite arrow shafts in his shop for sale to his customers. After seeing a pulmonologist, he learned that he had pure

Fall From Scaffolding

Fifty-three-year-old worker died when the scaffolding that he was standing on collapsed, causing him to fall to the ground. After the incident, the Boston Police investigated and found that the “saddle” portion of a side bracket manufactured by defendant had spread open. Plaintiff’s experts concluded that the most probable cause of the failure of

Electrical Accident

While working to insulate a third floor attic window of a residential property, the insulation installer sustained electrical burn injuries that ultimately resulted in a brain aneurysm causing his death. The aluminum ladder at the site was not tall enough to reach the attic window. The crew decided to place the ladder on top

Grain Bin Explosion

A thirty-five-year-old man died in an explosion at an Egg farm feed mill while working on the premises to repair bins used to hold grain and other material kept at the mill. The explosion occurred when a mill employee erroneously removed a product from the bin that was the site of the explosion, with

Grinding Wheel – Industrial Accidents

The thirty-eight-year-old male employee was operating an Industrial Accidents grinding machine with a grinding wheel in the manner it was intended to be used when the wheel suddenly fractured into several pieces, causing the employee to suffer severe and debilitating injuries to his right thigh and groin area. Days after the employee’s injury, another

Carburetor Spray

Thirty-nine-year-old male was burned over 80% of his body while working as an automobile mechanic. The mechanic was using carburetor spray manufactured by the defendant when the spray ignited, causing a flash fire. The mechanic brought a product liability action against the spray manufacturer. Discovery revealed the spray was so flammable that it posed

Safety Glasses

Worker sustained serious injuries resulting in permanent loss of vision when a bungee cord broke and caused blunt eye trauma to the worker’s left eye. At the time of the accident, the worker was wearing a pair of defendant’s safety glasses. The worker brought a products liability action against the manufacturer of the safety

Electrical System

While electrician performed electrical work on the electrical panel at a place of business, a dangerous and defective electrical system at the business caused a fire explosion to occur. The electrician was caused to sustain severe burn injuries. The business’s electrical system was defective and dangerous and in violation of the National Electrical Code.

Knuckle Puller

Worker was properly using a knuckle puller while conducting a brake job on an automobile, when the hook portion of the knuckle puller came free of the ball joint hold, striking the worker’s right eye. The knuckle puller was defective in that the hook portion of the tool was susceptible to coming free of

Strand Jack

Worker sustained serious injury to his leg when the Strand Jack he was using blew apart. Worker contended that the accident resulted from defects in the Jack and some of its component parts.

Roll Feed Punch Press Machine

Worker’s left hand was pulled into a roll feed punch press machine and crushed between the sheet and rollers. As a result, the worker’s ring finger and little finger were amputated. The front end of the machine presented a pinch point sufficient to crush and mutilate a worker’s hand. In addition, no emergency stop

Falling Pallet of Bricks

A fifty-year-old man sustained a catastrophic brain injury when a pallet of bricks weighing 3000 pounds was dropped into a smokestack where he was working, striking him in the head and knocking him from a platform inside the stack. At the time of the incident, a crane being operated by an unlicensed operator was

Utility Plant Floor

Plaintiff lost his life after he slid on the slippery sloped floor of an electric utility plant. Plaintiff was employee of independent contractor cleaning utility’s preheater. He was inspecting his team’s cleaning work when he slipped and fell on the wet floor. Plaintiff’s body was crushed when it was thrown into moving rotor of

Elevator

A faulty elevator pinned a 32-year-old worker against the back wall when it closed, pushing a hand-truck against the plaintiff. The truck trapped the plaintiff and cut off his air. He was asphyxiated. The elevator stopped between floors, so there was no means of escape.[102]

Chemical Still and Boiler Unit

The plaintiff was working near a chemical still. Plaintiff was severely burned in the resulting fire. The chemical still and boiler units were not equipped with explosion proof switches, nor were there adequate warnings that the particular chemicals used could explode.

Deep-Fat Fryolators

The plaintiff, a high school student, was severely burned when a fryolator pan filled with boiling hot grease spilled on him. The pan had to be lifted out manually to drain the grease. Plaintiff alleges, in part, that the fryolator should have been installed with available siphoning equipment or a spigot for draining hot

Oil Drum

The plaintiff’s husband was working with another employee in an attempt to remove the top of a 55-gallon drum which they believed contained a nonflammable cleaner. The workers were using a blow torch when the drum, which actually contained a flammable construction sealer, exploded. Both were severely burned and, later, both men died as

Hot Water Pipes

The plaintiff, while working in a crawlspace, came in contact with the outflow from an uncapped hot water pipe. As a result, plaintiff suffered extensive burn injuries. Investigation revealed that the outflow pipe, which carried water at 180 degrees, had been installed without a cap contrary to housing code requirements. Plaintiff alleges negligence in

Plastic Containers for Flammable Liquid

An employee was engaged in filling a plastic container with a flammable liquid using a hand pump. Investigations revealed that a flash fire occurred as a result of a buildup of static electricity caused by the use of a plastic, as opposed to a metal, container. The fire caused severe and disabling burn injuries

Aerosol Explosion; Equipment Design

A manufacturer of highly flammable aerosol sprays altered a compressor which vented gas into an occupied production area. The gas was ignited when the compressor was shut off. Several people died and many others were seriously injured when the explosion gutted the work area. Investigation revealed that inadequate equipment and training, among other things,

Aerosol Explosion; Plant Design

A manufacturer of highly flammable aerosol sprays designed a pump room in their plant so that gas valves, which had the potential to discharge highly flammable gasses, were in close proximity to numerous electrical sources of ignition. On one occasion flammable gas escaped into the pump room and was ignited by an electrical source,

Hamburger Grinding Machine

Plaintiff, a college student, obtained a summer job at a meat distributing company. Part of his duties involved operating a hamburger grinding machine. The machine did not have a machine guard over the grinding mechanism, although other models designed and manufactured by defendant had such safety guards. As plaintiff was placing meat in the

Meat Wrapping

A 52-year-old woman who had worked for 15 years as a meat wrapper developed debilitating headaches, shortness of breath and asthmatic-type wheezing. Diagnostic investigation revealed that these symptoms were caused by her prolonged exposure to noxious fumes generated by the use of hot wire cutting tools and hot polyvinyl plastic film in the meat

Crane

The plaintiff’s husband had been working in a crane as an inspector. Suddenly the crane, which was elevated 100 feet above the ground, collapsed because of a defective universal joint in the boom assembly of the crane, causing the boom assembly to fall to the ground with the plaintiff’s husband still inside. The plaintiff’s

Ladder – Industrial Accidents

The plaintiff, a workman, purchased a new ladder at a local discount store. The ladder had a label stating it was “Duty Rating 225 Lbs.” The plaintiff (well under 225 lbs.) set the ladder up to a storm drain. As he was progressing up the ladder with his tool box the third rung of…

Safety Mask

The plaintiff was employed in a chemical processing plant. His job required him to be exposed to toxic carbon monoxide. Because of this he wore a cannister style gas mask. Shortly after he had put on a new cannister, he was found dead from carbon monoxide inhalation. An x-ray analysis was done on the

Grinding Wheel

An industrial worker using an abrasive wheel at high speed was injured when the wheel, suddenly and without warning, shattered. Plaintiff has made expert analysis of the fragments which revealed internal flow attributable to the manufacturing process.

Bulldozer

The plaintiff was permanently paralyzed from the waist down, after he was run over by a large bulldozer. The driver of the vehicle claimed that he could not see him. Investigation revealed that the cabin was so high that it was impossible to see anyone standing closer than five feet behind, or in front

Conveyor Belt

The plaintiff was employed in a factory. His job was to operate a fork-lift and place wood scraps onto a conveyor belt for disposal. While he was engaged in this operation, his left arm became caught between the roller and the underside of the conveyor belt. As a result his arm was severed. There

Laboratory Hood

This case involves the design adequacy of glass-walled “fume Hoods” used in a laboratory at Boston Hospital. On January 26, 1968, a doctor was performing a perchloric acid digestion of organic materials. An explosion occurred and the glass from the hood shattered. A 24-year-old employee of the college was killed by the flying glass.

Shattered Nail

A workman, constructing a chicken roost, was striking a series of six-inch nails with a hammer. One of them fractured when struck, in such a way that it did not bend first, but fractured at the tip. The broken piece flew off and took out the workman’s eye. One interesting aspect of the case

Chemical Allergy

A man worked in a plant that manufactures detergents. His job was to mix and prepare the chemicals that went into the manufacture of the products. There were no warnings on the bags of chemicals relating to the danger of toxic reactions from exposure to the chemicals. The employee suffered a reaction to trichloroethylene…

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Products Liability – Industrial accidents

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