After the Deepwater Horizon exploded and sank in April 2010, killing 11 workers and spilling 4 million barrels of oil into the ocean, the entire world saw the terrible consequences of the offshore oil and gas industry’s questionable safety culture. That December, the United States filed a complaint in District Court against BP and other defendants for their role in the explosion and resulting ...
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Arnold & Itkin Attorneys Kurt Arnold, Caj Boatright, Roland Christensen, Joseph McGowin, and Claire Traver are seeking justice for a Jones Act seaman who died as a result of his employer’s failure to provide him with reasonable medical care. The company ignored the worker’s need for medical attention and died before his life could be saved. Offshore companies have a duty to take care of the ...
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In early February, the dangers of a COVID-19 outbreak onboard cruise ships were made abundantly clear when authorities quarantined Carnival’s Diamond Princess at a dock in Yokohama, Japan. All 3,711 people aboard the ship were stuck in Tokyo Bay for 27 days. By mid-March, 712 passengers had tested positive for coronavirus. By mid-April, fourteen of those on board had died from the virus. The ship ...
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Last Friday, a 41-foot supply boat overturned on the Neches River south of Port Neches. The incident killed one of the three passengers who were on the boat when it capsized. According to reports, the victim and two other workers from Carlsen’s Mooring Service were bringing cleaning supplies to a ship offshore. Carlsen’s Mooring Service is a company that supplies Port Arthur refineries and all ...
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Two weeks ago, a vessel collision on the Mississippi River claimed the lives of three men. The incident occurred on January 26 in the early hours of the morning and involved two towing vessels, the RC Creppel and the Cooperative Spirit. All victims were from the crew of the Creppel, and the boat sank because of the incident. Arnold & Itkin Is Representing the Families of Two Victims Now, Arnold & ...
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A young girl has died after she fell off a cruise ship in Puerto Rico. The 1 ½-year-old fell from the 11th floor of the Royal Caribbean cruise liner Freedom of the Seas at the Panamerican dock in San Juan. She was a child of an officer from the South Bend, Indiana Police Department, the department confirmed. The family was traveling with two other siblings and two sets of grandparents. "The ...
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On Sunday, two workers were killed after a training exercise accident on Royal Dutch Shell’s Auger Tension Leg Platform. An additional worker received treatment at a nearby hospital and was released. The incident occurred in the Gulf of Mexico’s deepwater, about 214 miles south of New Orleans. Officials from the United States Coast Guard and the Interior Department are currently investigating the ...
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Since October of 2017, Arnold & Itkin has closely followed the events surrounding the investigation of a Bouchard Transportation Co.'s Barge No. 255, which exploded and erupted into a violent fire just off the coast of Port Aransas, Texas. Our barge explosion attorneys are representing the family of Zachariah Jackson, one of the two workers killed during the incident. Officials never located ...
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Arnold & Itkin’s offshore wrongful death attorneys recently filed a case on behalf of the family of a young man who lost his life while performing tow work in the Baton Rouge area. The worker was on a barge when it collided with another vessel, causing him to fall into the water and drown. His captain had a duty to operate the barge safely. To make matters worse, the employer let down the young ...
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At Arnold & Itkin, our offshore injury attorneys highlight the importance of eliminating negligence on the part of employers and ship owners in the maritime industry. Doing this provides a safe environment for the thousands of offshore workers and passengers that utilize seagoing vessels daily. Examining the following maritime accidents reveals the importance of accountability and reveals how ...
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Posted By Arnold & Itkin LLP
Over the last two weeks, we posted two blogs regarding a barge that exploded near Port Aransas, taking the lives of two men. In the first blog, we discussed the beginning of the Coast Guard’s hearing regarding the incident, and then we explored the heartbreaking eyewitness testimony that emerged during the trial’s first week. This week, our law firm assisted the family of Jackson as we continued ...
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Last October, a fatal barge explosion occurred off the Port Aransas coast, killing two men. While one man’s body was found several days after the tragic incident, the second still has not be found. On November 2, our law firm filed a lawsuit on behalf of the presumed-dead sailor’s family. In that suit, we claimed that the company for which the decedent worked (Bouchard Transportation Company) had ...
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Arnold & Itkin LLP recently filed a lawsuit on behalf of a family who lost a loving husband and father in a tragic, but preventable, incident. Our client's loved one was working onboard a vessel off the coast of Angola when he suffered a massive heart attack. Sadly, he was unable to receive medical attention quickly enough to save him. Our offshore wrongful death lawyers have filed suit against ...
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Last August, the USS John McCain lost steering and veered into the path of a merchant tanker, the Alnic, off the coast of Singapore. The collision between the two ships led to the deaths of 10 US sailors. Now, the sailors' families are taking legal action against the tanker ship that killed their loved ones. What has complicated the situation is the release of two reports, each of which finds ...
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Shows like the Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch," highlight the wonders and dangers that commercial fishermen experience every day. However, even though the show may contain certain scripted aspects, the dangers of commercial fishing accidents are quite real. Workers are more likely to die on a commercial fishing vessel than any other workplace. Facts About Commercial Fishing Accidents ...
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The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said that an oil and gas worker employed by Talos Energy succumb to wounds he received while on the job. The worker was reportedly replacing pipes when he was wounded and died later that day as a result of the incident. Unfortunately, he was injured while trying to maintain a safe workplace environment by replacing out-of-service fire ...
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This weekend, our firm reported on a vessel collision between the USS Fitzgerald and the ACX Crystal, a merchant vessel flying under the Philippine flag. The collision occurred around 1:30 am local time, so many of the sailors aboard the Fitzgerald were asleep at the time. Damage from the collision occurred in two berthing spaces, a machinery room, and a radio room. Tragically, 7 sailors were ...
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In 2012, three Filipino construction workers lost their lives in a Black Elk Energy platform explosion. Numerous other workers were injured and the explosion caused a leak of an estimated 480 barrels of oil and water. Now, a federal grand jury is seeking to hold those responsible accountable for their involvement in the fatalities. Just today, the jury indicted two companies on charges of ...
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Underwater welding is a specialized type of welding that requires extensive training and unique skills. Underwater welders frequently work on offshore oil rigs and offshore pipelines when they are in need of repair. While the work can be very lucrative, it is arguably the most dangerous job in the country. According to one study, underwater welders have the highest fatality rate of any occupation. ...
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The attorneys at Arnold & Itkin recently represented a mother whose son was killed in a crane accident while working offshore. The case involved approximately 20 depositions and was fought in state and federal court, as well as appellate courts, by Attorneys Cory Itkin and Kurt Arnold. The case was hard fought, as the defendants contended that they were not at fault for the incident, diverting the ...
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Arnold & Itkin will represent the widow who lost her husband in a tragic offshore accident that occurred in Alabama. The longshoreman was killed in a crane accident that occurred on the BBC Louisiana. Maritime Attorneys Jason Itkin, Cory Itkin and Noah Wexler recently filed a wrongful death suit on behalf of the woman in Harris County, TX. We are committed to prevent accidents like this one from ...
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The smoke from the West Delta 32 platform fire has cleared, but the facts surrounding the accident remain cloudy. Last week, a fire broke out on the inoperative oil platform, leaving several workers injured and two missing. Initial reports from the Coast Guard and news articles indicated that that anywhere from four to 11 workers were injured in the explosion and that two others were not accounted ...
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