Articles Posted in Personal Injury

By

Construction workers have one of the most dangerous jobs in our nation. A recent wenatcheeworld.com report emphasizes this point as it discusses safety precautions at a Central Washington Hospital construction site. According to the article, the M.A. Mortenson Company project supervisor of the five-story building leads a crew of about 50 workers in stretching exercises to help prevent muscles from being pulled or strained. In addition to getting the workers warmed-up so that they aren’t injured while working in weather as low as 32 degrees, the project supervisor also warned the crew to be cautious of slippery conditions on the site resulting from the cooler weather.

The exercises these construction workers do stem from Mortenson’s Zero Injury safety program, which began in 1995. Based on the article, before this safety program was implemented, the company had a higher than average injury rate. Now however, the company has a lower than average industry injury rate. In fact, it recently broke the million mark for man-hours worked without any injuries occurring and resulting in lost work days. This number includes over 36,000 injury-free man-hours on the Central Washington Hospital site.
Continue reading

By

A 43-year-old Seattle man has been killed in a rollover car accident involving several vehicles on the Interstate 5 just north of Highway 518, the News Tribune reports. The victim was apparently driving a 1996 black Toyota Land Cruiser heading south on the 5 Freeway when there was a crash between a white Ford Crown Victoria operated by a taxicab company and a Toyota Land Cruiser. After the impact, the Toyota rolled over and landed on its roof where it was struck by a 2000 Toyota Camry. The driver of the taxi and the Camry were not injured, but the driver of the Land Cruiser, who authorities say, was not wearing a seatbelt, was pronounced dead. The incident is still under investigation.

In cases that involve multiple vehicles and victims, it’s always a good idea to get legal representation, especially if you’ve suffered serious personal injury and damages. That’s because in these accidents, the investigation is bound to be complicated and will invariably involve insurance adjusters and attorneys for several other parties. There will be conflicting reports and accounts from those involved in the accident as well as eyewitnesses.
Continue reading

By

A 22-year-old woman sustained critical injuries in a Washington pedestrian accident after a car hit her and left the scene. According to an article in the News Tribune, the young woman from Kent, Washington, was walking along the 2400 block of Benson Road when she was struck. Washington State Patrol troopers apparently found the woman in the northbound lanes of the roadway, 150 to 200 feet from where she was hit. The woman was transported to a Seattle hospital for treatment of critical injuries.

Pedestrian accidents can cause extremely critical injuries including traumatic brain injuries, paralysis, broken bones, coma or even death. In the United States, about 1,000 innocent pedestrians are injured every day by negligent drivers. According to the Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT), there were a total of 5,648 pedestrian accidents in the state in 2007. In those incidents, there were 208 fatalities and 867 serious injuries.
Continue reading

By

A 32-year-old bicyclist caused serious personal injuries to a 6-year-old boy near Pike Place Market in Seattle after he struck the child, who was walking in a crosswalk with his father and brother. According to a news report in the Seattle Times, the bicyclist was riding recklessly as he passed several cars, rode through a red light and hit the little boy, who was in a crosswalk. He tried to get back on his bike and ride away, but witnesses stopped him and held him until police arrived on scene. The child was taken to a Seattle hospital with a fractured jaw. According to the news report, the boy’s jaw had to be wired shut. Authorities say the bicyclist will be charged with vehicular assault and hit-and-run.

Tragic accidents such as this one occur everyday in Seattle. In this particular case, the child sustained serious injuries as a result of another individual’s negligence and blatant disregard for public safety. Asked by officials why he blew through the red light, the bicyclist told them that he thought he “could make it.” Negligent bicyclists and drivers should be held accountable for their actions, because those actions cause a lot of pain, emotional distress and financial strain to victims and their families. In this particular case, this little boy suffered serious facial injuries.
Continue reading

By

As November begins, residents of the State of Washington must brush-up on new laws pertaining to hand-held cell phone use. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, November 2009 marks the beginning of the ban against hand-held cell phones.

Based on the announcement, the other six states participating in the new ban besides Washington include California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Oregon, New York, and Utah, as well as the District of Columbia. Considering that Utah has defined the offense of using a hand-held cell phone as careless driving, it leaves one to question why all the other states issuing the ban have not done the same. On the other hand, speaking on a cell phone while driving will not be considered an offense in Utah unless a motorist is also committing some other moving violation other than speeding.

Many residents of Washington are likely to support the ban against hand-held cell phone use. This support is likely considering that it should contribute to lowering incidents of auto collisions caused by these devices distracting a driver or preventing a motorist from having both hands on the wheel. However, while Washington has banned texting while driving for all drivers, it has not issued a ban on young/novice drivers from using cell phones while driving, nor has a ban been placed against bus drivers from using cell phones while transporting a large bus with many passengers in tow.
Continue reading

By

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a recall of potentially dangerous cribs, the largest crib recall in the history of the United States. The CPSC is advising consumers to stop using The Stork Craft drop-down-side crib because it poses a serious strangulation risk to infants. Approximately 2.1 million of the cribs have been sold and are in use.

The move follows the news that 4 infants have died of suffocation after becoming entrapped in the crib’s drop down sides. There have also been at least 110 incidents in the United States and Canada when the drop-down sides of the cribs became detached, which resulted in dozens of babies either becoming entrapped between the side and the crib frame, or falling out of the crib altogether.

Drop down side cribs have a track record for injuring infants. Nearly 5 million cribs have been recalled over the past two years and the CPSC has discussed banning dropdown sides all together. Adding to the danger in this particular case is the fact that parts used to create the cribs are easily broken, missing, or misassembled. For instance, the crib’s drop-side could come off its tracks and create a “hazardous gap which can lead to infant entrapment and suffocation.”

Stork Craft has released a toll-free number for consumers to call, or to order a free repair kit: (877) 274-0277.
Continue reading

By

A recent article reported that a 6-year-old boy from Hoquiam was hit by a car on Halloween night and suffered leg and head injuries. It was noted that his condition was considered satisfactory on the morning of November 2, 2009. Although, sadly, this young child was hurt, he is lucky that he did not suffer more catastrophic injuries, which is unfortunately what usually occurs when vulnerably exposed pedestrians are struck by automobiles.

Apparently, while the State Patrol collision report stated that the young boy “darted out between cars” while crossing the street, the man accompanying the boy for trick-or-treating claims that the child did not jump into the road amidst traffic. When there are conflicting stories in auto accident and pedestrian accident incidents, law enforcement often turns to witnesses, as was the case in this particular situation. Based on the interviews witnesses provided regarding this pedestrian accident, law enforcement is currently standing by the claim that the driver was not at fault.

Although this particular accident was determined to have been caused by pedestrian inattention, some form of driver inattention may have also played a contributing role considering that many pedestrian accidents in Washington are caused by negligent motorists.
Continue reading

By

On the morning of November 19th there was a two-vehicle versus pedestrian collision near Renton Avenue South and 62nd Avenue South. A white pickup truck, driven by a 43-year-old male, was towing a black car. The car was being driven by a 45-year-old male, using a nylon rope as a tow cable. The two vehicles were traveling southeast on Renton Avenue South approaching 62nd Avenue South. At the same time, in an unmarked crosswalk, a 44-year-old male pedestrian was crossing 62nd Avenue South.

According to preliminary investigations, the driver of the truck made a right turn onto 62nd Avenue South. The car being towed did not make the turn and continued going straight. The pedestrian’s legs got caught on the towing rope, which caused him to lose his footing. The pedestrian then fell to the ground, and struck his head on the pavement.

The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries by SFD Medics who responded to the scene.
Continue reading

By

As a construction accident attorney, Kirk Bernard is aware that when working on a construction site in the state of Washington, there are steps you can take to protect yourself from a construction site injury. Being aware of your surroundings and potential danger is the first step to avoid suffering an injury in a Seattle construction accident.

Make sure you wear appropriate personal protective equipment. Don’t, for example, show up at a construction site wearing thin-soled shoes. Nails could easily penetrate your shoes. Always wear a hard hat in designated areas. Tools could fall on your head, you could fall from a ladder or you could fall from a roof. Protect your head from potential head and brain injuries.

For more information regarding how you can help protect yourself against construction accident injuries, read the entire article.

By

The death of a loved one can have a devastating impact on surviving family members. During this time of grief, it’s difficult to think of anything else except the loss of that special person.

But after the grieving ends, what is there to do about the ones who caused the death? Did the construction site employers, contractors and/or subcontractors fail to provide a safe environment for the loved one? Did that failure cause the accident that led to the death of the loved one?

Wrongful death can arise as a result of construction site accidents in Seattle. Wrongful death occurs when a person’s reckless or negligent actions result in the death of another. Wrongful death attorney Kirk Bernard knows that in order to win a wrongful death lawsuit, the following must be proven: defendant had a duty to the decedent; defendant breached that duty; death was caused by defendant’s breach of that duty; and the survivors have suffered damages as a result of the loss and death of the decedent.

Continue reading
Contact Information
900 Aurora Ave N #100
Seattle, WA 98109
Voice: (206) 298-9900
Fax: (206) 285-9400
Toll Free: (800) 418-8282

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Please do not include any confidential or sensitive information in a contact form, text message, or voicemail. The contact form sends information by non-encrypted email, which is not secure. Submitting a contact form, sending a text message, making a phone call, or leaving a voicemail does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Copyright © 2016 – 2024, Bernard Law Group
JUSTIA Law Firm Blog Design