Lake Charles Refinery Explosion Lawyers
Explosions at oil and chemical plant refineries can be catastrophic. Working with flammable materials and hazardous chemicals can spark a fire, resulting in a deadly explosion. At The Townsley Law Firm, we understand the devastation of sustaining severe injuries and requiring ongoing treatment to heal. You might be entitled to compensation for the medical bills, lost wages, and other losses you suffered.
Refineries often expose workers to a range of dangerous conditions. Even if you take the necessary precautions to keep yourself safe, you encounter heavy machinery, toxic substances, cramped working areas, and other hazards that can lead to injuries or death. Unfortunately, explosions can affect anyone in the vicinity. Injuries don’t only occur during the blast but also happen from flying debris, fires, and falling backward or off elevated platforms.
At The Townsley Law Firm, our Lake Charles workplace accident lawyers know how much an accident like this can affect your life. It can disrupt your routine and prevent you from returning to your job. You might struggle with the financial implications of paying for your treatment and other expenses. If you can’t afford your bills, you could end up in debt. We can help you seek the compensation necessary to recover and move forward with your life.
For a free consultation, call The Townsley Law Firm at (337) 377-0584 right now.
Common Causes of Refinery Explosions
Workers on refinery plants encounter dangers each time they set foot on the job site. Explosions can happen for a range of reasons. Heat, gases, and chemical reactions already pose a risk. Refining oil and other processes add another hazard that can somehow spark a fire and lead to an explosion.
The most common causes of refinery explosions are below.
Inadequate Training of Employees
Refinery workers should understand how the machinery and equipment they use work. They should also know what to do in emergencies. Operating dangerous equipment and handling combustible materials requires skill and experience. Employers must provide their employees with the necessary training to prevent accidents while cleaning the fuel pipes or working with chemicals near open flames.
The training programs employers should provide for refinery workers include:
- Storing and preparing hazardous materials for transport
- Emergency response
- Control measures for chemical safety
- Chemical hazards
- Exposure to electrical equipment
- Safety precautions
- Performing adequate checks before operating forklifts
Poor Maintenance
Explosions can happen if employees don’t maintain equipment, machinery, or the facility in general properly. Plant operators are supposed to adhere to regulations regarding safety measures to prevent accidents.
Routine inspections and maintenance are necessary to ensure everything at the plant is in good working condition. Repairs should also be done if there’s any damage, or if worn-out parts or malfunctioning equipment are discovered.
Corrosion
Refinery plants must use extreme heat to refine crude oil. Exposure to oxygen can corrode the machines necessary to perform this task. If corrosion occurs, workers might not even notice. It could take a long time before anyone detects a problem, allowing the corrosion to worsen over time. Eventually, an explosion can occur.
Employer Negligence
Employees aren’t the only people responsible for the conditions at a refinery. Employers must follow the regulations set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA sets standards to keep workers safe and avoid on-the-job accidents.
Some of those safety standards require refineries to:
- Warn workers of any hazards at the refinery
- Maintain all equipment and machinery regularly
- Routinely inspect workplace conditions for dangers
- Provide training for employees
- Remove hazards from working areas and walkways
- Provide safety gear and devices
Reactive Chemicals
Refinery workers must handle chemicals with extreme care since they’re highly reactive and combustible. Nitrogen is a common element that can react with another substance and lead to an explosion.
Refinery explosions can happen for numerous other reasons, such as:
- Improper labeling of substances
- Electrical hazards
- Well blowouts
- Using unsafe procedures
- Flammable materials
- Malfunctioning equipment
- Using impure or dirty chemicals
If you were hurt in a refinery explosion for any reason, you should call The Townsley Law Firm immediately. One of our experienced refinery explosion lawyers in Lake Charles can review the circumstances of the incident to determine what we can do to help.
Common Injuries in Refinery Explosions
Explosions at oil refineries can lead to a range of injuries. Some happen during the blast, while others occur from inhaling toxic substances or falling backward onto the platform.
The most common injuries caused by the blast wave of an explosion include:
- Blast lung
- Globe eye rupture
- Abdominal perforation
- Middle ear damage
- Concussion or traumatic brain injury
- Ruptured eardrum
- Abdominal hemorrhage
High temperatures, flames, and smoke can cause additional injuries following the blast. Flying debris and other hazards can also cause physical harm to workers. The most common injuries include:
- Broken bones
- Lacerations
- Spinal cord injuries
- Burns
- Lung damage and respiratory illness from smoke inhalation
- Loss of limb
- Internal bleeding
- Penetrating wounds
Physical injuries aren’t the only problems refinery workers can face after an explosion. Psychological trauma is also common. Depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can affect a person long after their physical wounds heal.
Benefits Available for Refinery Workers
When you’re hurt on the job, you can file a claim with your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance company. There are multiple benefits available to injured and sick workers who are unable to return to work or earn their usual wages.
Medical Benefits
Medical benefits allow an employee to seek treatment for a job-related injury or illness at their employer’s or insurance company’s expense. The workers’ compensation insurer must pay for all necessary medical expenses and the cost of traveling to doctor’s appointments.
If you incur out-of-pocket costs, you could also receive reimbursement. You must provide the insurance company with copies of your receipts and other documentation to prove you paid for your medical bills yourself.
Workers’ compensation laws allow injured workers to choose their doctors. You can select one medical provider from each specialty field to treat the injury or illness you suffered in the refinery explosion. However, you must receive pre-approval for benefits from the insurer for any non-emergency service or non-emergency hospitalization costing over $750.
Indemnity Benefits
If your injury prevents you from returning to work for more than seven calendar days, you can apply for indemnity benefits. There are multiple indemnity benefits available through workers’ compensation insurance. The first is temporary total disability.
Temporary total disability benefits begin on the date of your work-related injury or illness. However, you won’t receive your first payment until the first two weeks have passed since the explosion. Your injury must also last for more than two weeks to be eligible for this benefit. Payments are sixty-six and two-thirds percent of your average weekly wage before suffering the injury.
You can collect permanent total disability benefits if your injury or illness prevents you from maintaining any type of employment. The payments you receive are the same as the rate you collect for temporary total disability. You qualify for continued coverage as long as you have a permanent injury and can’t perform any job. However, if you begin working again, you can’t receive benefits.
Supplemental earnings benefits might be available if you’re able to return to work but can’t make at least 90 percent of the wages you earned before the explosion. Payments are sixty-six and two-thirds percent of the difference between your average monthly wage now and the average monthly wage you made before suffering an injury. You could collect benefit payments up to a maximum of 520 weeks.
You could receive a one-time payment of $50,000 if your injury is a catastrophic injury. A catastrophic injury refers to paraplegia, quadriplegia, or the total anatomical loss of:
- Both eyes
- One foot and one hand
- Both legs
- Both hands
- Both arms
- Both feet
- Any combination of these two body parts
Injured refinery workers can also qualify for vocational rehabilitation services. You can seek assistance finding a job if you can’t earn wages equal to the wages you made before the accident. Your employer must choose a licensed professional vocational rehabilitation counselor you can work with to help you find a position similar to the job you had before or to help you complete training for a different job.
Death Benefits
If you lost your loved one in a refinery explosion, you could file a claim for death benefits through their employer’s workers’ compensation insurance. To qualify for benefit payments, you must be the surviving spouse, dependent child, or another dependent family member. Additionally, the worker must have died within two years of receiving their last treatment for the job-related injury.
Death benefits pay up to $8,500 for any reasonable burial costs. They can also provide a one-time payment of $75,000 each for surviving parents of the deceased employee if there aren’t other surviving dependents.
Contact Us
If you were injured in a refinery explosion, contact The Townsley Law Firm today to discuss your legal options. You might be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, and we can help you file a claim.
You should not be forced to handle this complex process alone. We will remain by your side to advocate for your rights and fight for the maximum benefits you deserve.
Call us at (337) 377-0584 for a free consultation with one of our dedicated and trusted Lake Charles refinery explosion lawyers.
