Types of Offshore Accidents: What Makes Oil Rig Jobs Dangerous?
Those who make their living offshore jobs know that oil rig jobs are dangerous. They also know that what makes oil rig jobs dangerous is the type of serious and life-threatening accidents that can occur during the course of their work.
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Oil Rig Accidents
Oil Rig Injury Lawyer in Houston
When you or a loved one have been hurt in an oil rig accident, an oil rig accident lawyer can play an instrumental in your efforts to win justice.
The laws governing injury claims aboard drilling rigs and fixed platforms aren’t always simple to navigate, and workers injured or killed on oil rigs through explosions, fires, or as the result of employer negligence often find themselves navigating a complex framework of laws and regulations. An experienced oil rig injury lawyer can help you assess your claim and determine the correct course of action based on the specifics of your situation.
If you’re living in the aftermath of an oil rig accident looking for answers and paths to relief, the Houston oil rig injury lawyers at Mithoff Law are here to help.
Contact the trial-tested attorneys at Mithoff Law at 713-654-1122 or online to schedule free consultation online.
“Mithoff has been one of Houston’s most respected attorneys for decades, handling such high-profile cases as the aftermath of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Enron-related litigation on behalf of J.P, Morgan Chase and highly publicized bus and plant explosions.”
– Houston Chronicle, June 26, 2019
The attorneys at Mithoff Law have decades of experience handling oil rig injuries, and navigating the complex legal and regulatory framework applicable to such claims. Mithoff Law’s experience includes:
Injury on The High Seas
Mithoff Law represented a worker who sustained severe shoulder injuries when he fell aboard a service vessel that was supporting an offshore pipeline project in the Persian Gulf. The plaintiffs alleged that the vessel had inadequate anti-skid deck plating in the area where the injury occurred. The case was settled for a confidential amount.
Offshore Helicopter Crash
Mithoff Law represented surviving family members of offshore rig personnel who died when the helicopter transferring them from a base on land to an offshore rig crashed. The plaintiffs alleged that there were design defects in the helicopter’s control systems. The case settled for a confidential amount.
Statutes commonly applicable in the context of oil rig accidents
The legal and regulatory framework in the area of oil rig accidents is complex and voluminous. The trial-tested attorneys at Mithoff Law have spent decades navigating that framework, and are familiar with how those laws and regulations are applied in a wide variety of contexts. Commonly-encountered statutes that may be applicable to an oil rig injury (or activities adjacent to offshore rig work) include:
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCS Lands Act) provides that, for most workers who are injured while working aboard rigs affixed to the outer continental shelf, their injury claims are typically subject to the laws of the state most adjacent to the location of the accident, so long as those laws are not in direct conflict with relevant federal laws.
The Jones Act
Although typically used in cases involving boats, barges, or other large marine vessels, workers injured aboard mobile offshore drilling units, drillships, or service vessels may be able to file an injury claim under the Jones Act. Claims will often turn on whether the injury arises from the activities of a “vessel in navigation.”
Jones Act claims also require claimants to establish their status as a Jones Act seaman (generally, someone who spends a significant amount of time working on a vessel in navigation).
Offshore workers who qualify as seamen may also qualify for health and daily living benefits due to a principle of maritime law known as “maintenance and cure.”
The Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act
The claims of many offshore oil rig workers are governed by the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. The Act is distinct from the Jones Act, and provides different types of remedies from the Jones Act.
Death on the High Seas Act
The Death on the High Seas Act can also impose additional requirements on maritime injury claims, depending upon where geographically the injury occured.
Common oil rig accidents and injuries
In addition to being at sea, oil rigs are volatile work environments that run on tight schedules and involve highly flammable materials. As such, accidents happen, and the results can be devastating for victims and their families. These are some of the more common oil rig accidents:
- Burn injuries from explosions and fires
- Neurological/brain injuries from swinging pipes or dropped equipment
- Spinal cord injuries from falls or collisions caused by slippery stairs and unguarded crossings
- Amputations
- Wrongful death
Contact a trial-tested oil rig accident lawyer today
If you or a loved one were injured in an oil rig accident and in need of workers’ compensation, an oil rig accident lawyer can help. When you hire a Houston oil rig injury lawyer with the depth of experience of Mithoff Law, you can rest assured that your claims will receive the attention to detail that they deserve.
Speak to an experienced oil rig accident lawyer at Mithoff Law today. Call 713-654-1122 or request a free consultation online and get your case off to the right start.
