California Injury Blog
A man was injured in a construction site accident after he fell off a ladder the afternoon of February 16, 2015.
According to a news report in the Orange County Register, the incident occurred at a parking structure under construction near Gothard Street and Center Avenue near Golden West College.
The man was standing on a ladder inside a hole and fell about 20 feet.
Firefighters had to
rescue the man from the hole. He was transported to an area hospital. The extent of the man’s injuries is not known. Authorities are investigating the cause of this construction accident.
Ladder Accidents
Ladder accidents can be deadly, whether they occur at home or on a construction site. The number of ladder-related injuries in the United States increased by more than 50 percent from 1990 to 2005, according to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
Researchers found that more than 2.1 million people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for ladder-related injuries during that time period, which averages to more than 136,000 cases a year. Nearly 10 percent of those victims needed to be hospitalized. Males accounted for 77 percent of ladder-related injuries.
Also, fractures were the most common type of injury and legs and feet were the most frequently injured parts of the body.
What Caused This Construction Accident?
According to the news report, the worker was standing on a ladder inside a hole and fell about 20 feet.
There are several questions that must be asked here. Was the worker provided with the necessary job and safety training? Was the ladder defective in some way? Was the worker equipped with the necessary fall safety and protective gear? Was the worker supervised at the time?
It is important that these and other factors are carefully examined in order to determine precisely what caused this accident.
Compensation for Injured Workers
Injured workers can seek workers’ compensation benefits from their employers. However, California workers’ compensation benefits tend to be woefully inadequate, especially when it comes to catastrophic or severe injuries. In such cases, an experienced Orange County personal injury lawyer can guide workers and families with regard to filing a third-party claim.
Such claims are filed against parties other than employers such as general contractors, sub-contractors, building owners and manufacturers of defective products. For example, if a defective ladder caused the accident, the ladder manufacturer can be held liable for the injuries and damages caused.
The best personal injury law firms will always offer a free consultation and comprehensive case evaluation to injured victims and their families.