Archive for the ‘Burn injuries’ Category

Fieldwood Energy Echo platform explosion kills contract worker

One contract worker has been killed and three others seriously injured in an explosion on Fieldwood Energy’s Echo platform, 12 miles off the coast of Louisiana. The oil and gas platform was apparently not in production at the time and no pollution has been reported. Fieldwood Energy is a Houston-based company with an office in Lafayette, Louisiana.

KHOU’s story; ABC Channel 13’s story; Channel 2’s story

Workers at Terra at Piney Point Apartments electrocuted and burned

Two workers were seriously burned in an electrocution incident at the Terra at Piney Point Apartments, located at Fondren Road and Woodway Drive in Houston. The two men, who did not work for the apartment complex, were using a ladder to do some painting to the exterior of the apartments. The ladder slipped somehow, causing the men to come into contact with an electrical wire. According to witness Cheryl French, interviewed by KHOU, one of the men’s head was on fire. Both men suffered severe burns.

Houston work injury attorneys Smith & Hassler

Photo credit: KHOU

Georgia Pacific plant explosion in Corrigan, Texas – at least 9 injured

At least nine people were taken to hospital Saturday evening, some of them by life flight helicopter, after an explosion at the Georgia Pacific plant in Corrigan, Texas. The explosion happened around 6:15 p.m. and was followed by a fire that took fire crews about an hour to bring under control. Corrigan Police Chief Darrell Gibson said several of the victims were severely burned; five were transported by helicopter. Georgia Pacific is based in Atlanta, GA and manufactures paper products including household names such as Dixie cups and Brawny paper towels.

Channel 11’s report says the plant manufactures plywood, and that firefighters said the apparent cause of the incident was a problem with the plants sawdust collection system. The East Texas town of Corrigan is in Polk County, Texas and has a population around 1,600.

Media coverage of the Georgia Pacific plant explosion: Channel 2 Houston

Formosa Plastics plant fire injures five workers near Victoria, Texas

A fire broke out the morning of Friday September 13th at the Formosa Plastics plant near Victoria, Texas. Four of the injured workers were transported to a Houston area hospital’s burn unit and a fifth worker was taken to a hospital in Victoria.  The company has not yet released the names of the injured men.  Channel 2 reports that when the fire started the men were doing maintenance on a tower in the polyethylene-II unit which produces a plastic pellet.  Formosa Plastics is currently under investigation for a May 2nd fire that sent 14 people to hospital.  The Victoria Advocate said the employees were initially treated at an on-site medical facility but were transferred because of the nature of their injuries.

Related content: Houston work injury attorneys

ExxonMobil refinery fire in Beaumont – 12 workers injured

Local media outlets are reporting a fire at the ExxonMobil refinery in Beaumont, Texas has injured twelve workers. At around 10:30 a.m. today, Wednesday April 17th, a fire broke out in a process unit that was down for maintenance at the time.  ExxonMobil states the fire was quickly controlled and is no longer burning. Injuries to twelve contract workers have been reported, six of those workers were transported to area hospital for medical attention. Three of the injured victims are reported as having suffered severe burns.  An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.  The contract workers are employed by Signature Industrial Services.

Local media coverage of the ExxonMobil refinery fire in Beaumont: ABC Channel 13 News, KHOU Houston, Channel 2 News Houston, FOX News Houston, Houston Chronicle.

Workers installing flagpole electrocuted in Riata West subdivision in Cypress

Two workers installing a flagpole yesterday at the Riata West subdivision off Barker Cypress Road in Cypress were rushed to hospital when the pole made contact with an overhead electrical wire. The men, who were contract workers installing the flagpole for developer CastleRock Communities, suffered burns to their hands and feet. Investigators say that as the men were installing the flagpole it began to lean, so the men grabbed the pole to prevent it from falling and that’s when the power line was contacted. CastleRock Communities say the two men work installing signs an flagpoles for them. Channel 2’s article on the incident did not include information on the men’s conditions. If you have been injured at work and aren’t sure of your rights, call the experienced personal injury attorneys at Smith & Hassler and request a no-cost evaluation of your work injury case.

Workers at the Riata West subdivision in Cypress were electrocuted when a flagpole touched an overhead power line

Five workers burned at TXI Cement Company plant in Midlothian, Texas

Five workers have been burned in an accident at the TXI Cement Company plant in Midlothian, three of them were burned critically. The plant is in North Texas near Dallas. In a statement issued last night, TXI said it had few details about what happened but the men suffered their burns while doing maintenance work in a kiln in the main processing area of the plant. The three workers with the worst burns were air lifted to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, the two others were taken by ground ambulance. Channel 13 News’ story is here.

If you or a family member have been injured at work, such as in a construction site accident, call Houston-based personal injury attorneys Smith & Hassler for a free consultation regarding your legal rights. Smith & Hassler has represented hard-working Texans injured on the job for more than 20-years.

KMTEX chemical plant explosion near Port Arthur kills 1, injures 3

ABC Channel 13 News has posted a brief report on an explosion at the KMTEX chemical plant near Port Arthur, Texas that has injured 3 workers and killed one worker. The incident happened around 2:00PM on Thursday March 31, 2011.  Apparently an explosion was followed by a flash fire. A Jefferson County Sheriff’s Deputy named Rod Carroll is quoted as telling KFDM-TV of Beaumont that the explosion involved gasoline that was being processed. Another statement credited to Jefferson County Emergency Management Coordinator Greg Fountain was that a 500 barrel fuel tank had exploded. Two of the injured workers were airlifted, one to Memorial Hermann Hospital and one to John Sealy Hospital in Galveston. Another was taken by ambulance to Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont.

KMTEX’s web site identifies the company as a specialist in the custom processing of petrochemicals, speciality chemicals, oleochemicals, agricultural chemicals, and food grade chemicals. The plant is located at 2450 S. Gulfway Drive, Port Arthur, Texas 77641.

KMTEX chemical plant near Port Arthur, scene of a deadly explosion on March 31, 2011

The Houston Chronicle also provided coverage of the KMTEX explosion. The Chronicle article indicates authorities will be investigating how a flammable solvent remained in a pipeline workers were welding when the explosion occurred. According to unnamed witnesses, one of the workers was welding a pipeline that contained coal tar naptha solvent when the fire occurred: the workers thought all of the solvent had been evacuated from the line. Naptha is a by-produce of crude oil and is highly flammable. According to authorities, one of the injured workers suffered a head injury and another had fractured legs.

Our thoughts are with the friends and family of the deceased worker and the three men injured in the blast. Smith & Hassler believes that the hard-working men and women of the Houston energy industry deserve a safe working environment and should be able to expect to return home safely at the end of each work day. If you or a loved one has been hurt in a plant explosion, call our experienced personal injury attorneys right away.

Man burned escaping fire at Three Fountain Apartments in Houston

Firefighters responded to a fire at Three Fountain Apartments around 4:15AM the morning of Friday March 4th. The apartments are located on Burgoyne Road near Fountain View Drive. Houston News Channel 2 reports that when firefighters arrived on the scene they saw flames coming from two apartments. Investigators said a man jumped from a second story apartment: he sustained second and third degree burns over 35% of his body and was transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital to be treated. The cause of the fire is under investigation: one apartment was completely destroyed and three more apartments had smoke or water damage.

A man was burned jumping from a second-story window escaping a fire at Three Fountains Apartments in Houston

If you have been seriously injured in a house, apartment or other type of building fire, contact the experienced personal injury lawyers at Smith & Hassler for a free consultation. Sometimes building fires are purely accidental and are nobody’s legal fault. Other times building fires happen due to negligence: failure to maintain smoke detectors, properly light emergency exits, provide and maintain fire extinguishers, improperly locked fire exits and other reasons. Burn injuries are almost always painful and frequently severe and debilitating.

Apartment fire in West Houston sends one resident to hospital

Houston Fire Department responded to a one-alarm fire that broke out at an apartment complex on Burgoyne near Nantucket around 4:15am. The only injuries reported at this time are burn injuries to a man who was apparently a resident at the complex: he was rushed to a nearby hospital and his condition is unknown. Officials from HFD are working to determine what caused the fire. ABC Eyewitness News on Channel 13 is reporting the apartment complex is called Oaks of Cypress Station, and that the resident was taken to hospital for what is being described as an asthma attack. The same Channel 13 report also quotes firefighters as saying the apartment complex was built in the 1970’s before codes were in place that required fire hydrants, so the nearest fire hydrant to the complex was 600 feet away.

Some fires are simply accidents that are nobody’s fault, others are preventable tragedies due to the negligence of one or more people. Unfortunately (particularly early in the process) it is difficult to determine which you are dealing with: accident or negligence. If you have been injured in a house fire, apartment fire or other type of fire, call or email Houston personal injury law firm Smith & Hassler for a free consultation.