Common Injuries in a Jones Act Case

If You’ve Been Injured on a Vessel, Learn About the Common Injuries in a Jones Act Case from Our Houma Personal Injury Lawyer

Working on the open water is one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States. This is particularly true in Louisiana, where our ports and waters are used heavily for transportation of cargo and commercial fishing. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), commercial fishermen experience work-related fatalities at a rate over 40 times higher than the average American worker. In addition, the entire water transportation industry has a fatality rate 4.7 times higher than the national average. Other statistics indicate that nearly half of all fatalities occurred after vessel disasters, while another 30 percent were caused by falls overboard. As a result, there are many common injuries in a Jones Act case caused by these increased risks of injury or death that a Houma personal injury lawyer could handle for you and your family.

Here at the Patrick Yancey Law Firm, we understand the complexities of Jones Act claims and can guide you through the process of seeking the compensation you deserve. We won’t let defense lawyers and insurance adjusters try to hide behind the complex matrix of federal laws and regulations to undermine or deny your claim. If you or a loved one has been injured while working on a vessel in Louisiana waters, learn about the common injuries in a Jones Act case and call our experienced Houma personal injury lawyer to learn more about your rights during a free consultation.

What Is the Jones Act?

The Jones Act is officially known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, and is a federal law that provides legal protections to maritime workers who are injured while performing their job duties aboard vessels. Unlike traditional workers’ compensation systems that cover land-based employees, the Jones Act requires injured seamen to prove that their employer’s negligence contributed to their injuries. However, the standard for proving negligence under the Jones Act is considerably lower than in typical personal injury cases. Thus, as injured worker only needs to show that the employer’s negligence played some part in causing the injury, no matter how small.

To qualify for protection under the Jones Act, a worker must meet the definition of a “seaman.” Generally, this means the individual must spend at least 30 percent of their working time aboard a vessel that is in navigation on navigable waters. Workers who do not qualify as seamen may still be protected under a separate federal law called the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA). The LHWCA covers maritime workers such as longshoremen, harbor workers, ship repairers, and shipbuilders who work on or near navigable waters but are not assigned to specific vessels. The key difference is that the LHWCA operates as a no-fault workers’ compensation system, meaning injured workers do not need to prove employer negligence. However, the Jones Act often allows for greater compensation, including damages for pain and suffering that are not available under the LHWCA. 

Common Causes of Accidents Resulting in a Jones Act Claim

Maritime work environments present unique hazards that are not found in most land-based jobs. For instance, the combination of heavy machinery, unpredictable weather, constant motion and the isolated nature of work at sea creates conditions where accidents are far more likely to occur. When adding in that most workers are working long hours and doing physically taxing jobs day after day, every risk inherent to the job becomes multiplied. 

This is why employers have a duty under the Jones Act to provide their workers with a reasonably safe work environment. When they fail to meet this obligation through careless, reckless or otherwise negligent acts, injured seamen have the right to pursue compensation against them. Indeed, many accidents that lead to Jones Act claims result from preventable circumstances but for the employer’s negligence. When employers cut corners on safety training, fail to maintain equipment properly, or push workers to operate in unsafe conditions, the consequences can be devastating. 

Some of the most common causes of maritime accidents that our Houma personal injury lawyer could handle for you and your family include the following:

• Slips, trips, and falls on wet or oily deck surfaces
• Falls overboard due to inadequate safety barriers or failure to provide personal flotation devices
• Malfunctioning or poorly maintained equipment and machinery
• Inadequate training on proper safety procedures
• Failure to provide appropriate safety gear
• Unseaworthy vessel and unsafe conditions for operation
• Crane and winch accidents during loading and unloading operations
• Collisions with other vessels or fixed objects
• Fires and explosions caused by improper handling of fuels or chemicals
• Being struck by falling objects or moving cargo
• Exposure to toxic substances such as asbestos, benzene, or diesel exhaust
• Overexertion from strenuous physical labor during long shifts
• Violence among crew members due to inadequate supervision, and
• Other types of causes of common injuries in a Jones Act case that our Houma personal injury lawyer could handle for you.

Common Injuries in Jones Act Cases

The nature of maritime work means that injuries sustained on vessels are often severe and life-altering. The same conditions that make this work so dangerous also contribute to the severity of injuries when accidents do occur, often turning minor falls into catastrophic accidents. This includes from heavy equipment, extreme weather, and the challenge of obtaining prompt medical care when far from shore all play a role in determining how seriously a worker is injured.

As a result, maritime workers who are hurt on the job may suffer from a wide range of physical and psychological injuries. Some injuries require extensive medical treatment and rehabilitation, while others result in permanent disabilities that prevent workers from ever returning to their former occupations. Furthermore, some injuries can be catastrophic injuries and lead to the wrongful death of an innocent worker.

The most common injuries in a Jones Act case in Louisiana include the following:

• Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs) – a traumatic brain injury occurs when an outside force causes damage to the brain, usually due to shaking or the impact itself. TBIs can range from mild concussions to severe injuries causing permanent cognitive impairment, personality changes, and physical disabilities preventing the victim from ever working again. Maritime workers may suffer TBIs from falls, being struck by objects, or accidents involving heavy equipment, sometimes a combination of these factors – especially on commercial fishing boats.
• Spinal Cord Injuries (SCIs) – spinal cord injuries can cause temporary or permanent changes in sensation, movement, strength, and body functions below the injury site. An injury high on the spinal cord can result in quadriplegia (paralysis of all four limbs), while lower injuries may cause paraplegia (paralysis of the lower body). These catastrophic injuries often require lifelong medical care and assistance, including future surgeries and procedures to manage symptoms, reduce scar tissue, and otherwise help a victim’s condition improve.
• Broken bones and fractures – the forces involved in maritime accidents frequently cause broken bones in the arms, legs, ribs, pelvis, and other areas. Some fractures heal completely with proper treatment, while others may result in chronic pain or limited mobility. The most serious fractures involve compound fractures which require surgery and often the installation of painful hardware, especially for orbital blowout fractures or tib-fib fractures in the ankle/lower leg.
• Amputations – workers may lose fingers, hands, arms, feet, or legs when they become caught in machinery, winches, or other equipment – especially on commercial fishing vessels. Amputations are among the most devastating maritime injuries and require extensive rehabilitation and the use of prosthetic devices because they are always permanent and disabling, no matter what limb was amputation.
• Burns – fires and explosions aboard vessels can cause severe burns that require skin grafts and lengthy hospital stays. Chemical burns from exposure to hazardous substances are also common in certain maritime industries.
• Drowning and near-drowning injuries – workers who fall overboard may suffer near-drowning injuries that can cause permanent brain damage due to oxygen deprivation. There is also a condition known as secondary drowning, which can appear that a victim was rescued from drowning but still can drown on dry land due to the physiological response by his or her lungs.
• Crush injuries – being pinned between heavy equipment, cargo, or vessel structures can cause crushing injuries to internal organs, bones, and soft tissues. This is very common on commercial fishing vessels such as crab or shrimp boats, but also on oil rigs or boats too.
• Neck and back injuries – herniated discs, muscle strains, and other spinal injuries can cause chronic pain and limit a worker’s ability to perform physical tasks. Sometimes this results in catastrophic personal injuries such as a cervical fusion or lumbar fusion, each which are permanent, restrictive and irreversible. This type of injury also means that a worker will likely never be able to work on a vessel again, usually causing a significant lost future earnings injury.
• Hearing loss – prolonged exposure to loud machinery and equipment without proper hearing protection can result in permanent hearing damage, particularly on oil production vessels or rigs, tugboats, or other large commercial transport vessels.
• Blindness – whether partial or total, and whether in one or both eyes, the loss of vision of a maritime worker is a very serious injury which could be caused by mechanical means (i.e., metal shavings or a winch that whips back), chemical means (i.e., exposure to caustic chemicals leaking or spraying) or thermal means (i.e., fires, explosion or bursts of steam).
• Repetitive stress injuries – the physical demands of maritime work can lead to conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, and rotator cuff injuries over time, most requiring surgical intervention and some prolonged absence from work.
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – workers who survive serious accidents or witness traumatic events may suffer from psychological injuries that affect their mental health and ability to function normally; and
• Other serious types of common injuries in Jones Act cases in Louisiana that our Houma personal injury lawyer could handle for you and your family.

Have One of the Common Injuries in a Jones Act Case? Call the Patrick Yancey Law Firm for Help 

If you have been injured while working on a vessel in Louisiana, you may be entitled to significant compensation under the Jones Act. Maritime law is complex, and employers and their insurance companies often try to minimize or deny valid claims in order to not pay you what you deserve. Having an experienced Houma personal injury lawyer like Patrick Yancey on your side can make all the difference in the outcome of your case. 

The Patrick Yancey Law Firm has the knowledge and resources to investigate your accident, gather evidence of employer negligence, and fight for the full compensation you deserve. We can help you recover damages for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses related to your injury. There is no cost to learn more about your legal rights under Louisiana and federal law, and we only get paid a percentage of what we recover for you and only after we make that recovery. This means there is no upfront cost or financial risk to begin working with our bodily injury law firm.

Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and learn more about your legal options by calling (985) 313-9791 or by submitting a message through our contact form available on our website. We are happy to talk to you over the phone or in person.