Law Blog Atlanta

One person was killed, another seriously burned and three individuals were injured as the result of a nuclear plant explosion in southern France.  Those injured by the explosion were not contaminated with radiation.

The explosion took place in an oven used to melt radioactive metallic waste, but the cause has yet to be determined. No leaks outside of the site have been reported.

Regardless of where a plant explosion occurs, unfortunately people can suffer catastrophic injuries or even death. The industrial accident attorneys at Pope & Howard, P.C. have extensive experience representing the victims of industrial accidents. Victims who survive these accidents can have their lives impacted in many ways, including:

• Pain and suffering
• Permanent burn injuries
• Expensive medical bills
• Lost income due to an inability to work
• Intense emotional distress

Pope & Howard, P.C. understand how complex industrial cases work, and have the knowledge to navigate the complex relationship between worker’s compensation and industrial accident litigation.

If you or someone you know has been injured or killed in an industrial accident, please contact Pope & Howard, P.C. at 404-994-4486. You can also visit our website, popehoward.com, for more information.

On New Year’s Eve, an explosion at the Federal-Mogul plant in Blacksburg, Virginia seriously injured workers at the plant. Such industrial accidents often trigger an investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and it is likely such an investigation will occur here.

Marc Howard, founding partner of the Pope & Howard, P.C. law firm, is a Blacksburg, Virginia native who routinely handles cases involving industrial accidents resulting in severe injuries.

“Explosion cases are some of the most difficult for the people involved, as they often result in serious burn injuries and post traumatic stress” said Howard. ‘Industrial accidents, including explosions often cause catastrophic and permanent injury.” In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were a total of 5,488 workplace fatalities in the United States in 2007.

Industrial and workplace accident litigation is an extremely complicated, sophisticated area of personal injury law. Usually, thousands of pages of documents, multiple parties, the need for electronic discovery, and large corporate defendants make industrial accident cases difficult for most Plaintiffs’ attorneys.

Contrary to what most personal injury lawyers think, workers’ compensation does not usually bar workplace injury or industrial explosion lawsuits. Contractors working at an industrial facility, for example, can usually recover against the premises owner. Employees of the facility operator may be able to recover against other contractors on the property, inspection services, and product manufacturers. In some states, employees may sue their employer for gross negligence (which often exists in the workplace accident scenario). Third-party lawsuits almost always result in a significantly larger award than the award available in the workers’ compensation system.

In the Blacksburg Federal Migul explosion case, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office stated that four contract workers sustained multiple injuries while doing maintenance on December 31, 2010. It is likely that OSHA and state investigators will review the case to determine a cause of the explosion.

Pope & Howard, P.C., www.popehoward.com, is a top rated industrial accident law firm specializing in numerous practice areas, including personal injury, construction site accident cases and premises liability cases.