It may surprise you to know that at least one person will suffer serious and life-altering injuries or die every day due to electrocution, shock, arc flash, and arc blast. Most often many of these accidents tend to occur in the workplace where there are several kinds of common electrical injuries such as burns, electric shock, electrocution, falling off a ladder or scaffold, nerve and muscle damage, cardiac arrest or irregular heart rhythm, comas, amputation, and physical deformity.
The severity of the injury typically depends on a variety of factors that include the type of circuit involved, the voltage, and the electric current. In the many cases that we have seen, electrocution results in three kinds of burns: flame, electrical arc, and direct contact. In most instances where a direct contact electrical burn was sustained, it is the result of the electrical current passing through the body causing electro-thermal burns on the skin’s surface and the deeper layers of the skin.
When dealing with arc burn injuries, we generally see thermal and flame burns when the current sparks between two objects. The flame burn is the result of the heat from an electrical arc resulting in thermal burns. The flame burn occurs as a result of a direct burn from a flame.
Since a vast majority of accidents like this tend to happen in the workplace, workers’ compensation normally kicks in to cover these injuries and offers medical treatment, rehab, and a reduced wage when they can’t work. In some instances, a compensation claim may be refused. You will need to speak to a competent Austin personal injury attorney to get this settled.
Although employers are often to blame when an employee suffers an electrical injury due to an unsafe working condition, these types of injuries can also be caused by the negligence of a third party or a defective product. The third party in some cases may be the property owner where the electrocution occurred and/or the maker or seller of the defective product that caused the injuries or death. In cases of this type involving serious injuries or death, you should contact an Austin personal injury attorney with extensive experience handling serious injury and wrongful death cases of this nature.
Often when an electrical injury or electrocution occurs on another person’s property, the area of law known as premises liability will apply. In a nutshell, this may mean the injured victim is able to recover compensation from the landowner, or the person who has control of the land. For example, many electric shocks and electrocutions take place on construction sites. When that property is being worked on, the general contractor normally manages the property, not the landowner.
Electrical injury and electrocution may also occur as the result of a defective product. Products can be defective due to manufacturing flaws, design defects, or inadequate warnings. This is a complex area of the law. Further, electrocution and electric shock accidents often cause permanent, life-altering injuries and require expensive long-term medical treatment. This is why it is important to consult and select a qualified Austin personal injury attorney to investigate your case and prosecute it aggressively.
In these types of cases, Lee, Gober & Reyna will fight hard to recover the maximum damages to provide compensation for those costs. These damages act to compensate the victim or their family for past, present, and future medical treatment, lost wages, physical impairment, disfigurement, pain and suffering, and mental anguish.
If you or a family member has suffered a serious electrical shock injury or death by electrocution, make sure you take the time to consult with an Austin attorney who is experienced in this area. You need to be able to protect your legal rights and have access to compensation if your case has the potential to go to court. Speak to us about your case. We know the value of loyalty, honesty, and honor, something our clients deeply appreciate.