An oil rig accident is the worst event in a survivor's life. For far too many rig workers, it's the event that ends their lives. Oil rig deaths and injuries leave a wake of enormous financial strain, emotional anguish, and grief in its wake. We know because we spend most of our days talking with oil rig accident survivors—men and women who committed their lives and careers to a company that didn't take care of them when they needed it most.
Our oil rig accident attorneys have represented workers from Houston, Galveston, Baton Rouge, and all over the Gulf Coast. Every time we hear a case, we see the same pattern: cost-cutting that leads to untrained (or too few) staff, which leads to more mistakes, creating terrible accidents. In some cases we see companies forgoing maintenance in the name of profit, putting hundreds of workers at risk on a daily basis.
Arnold & Itkin has helped hundreds of these same workers get the money they need to replace their lost wages, put food on the table, and pay for the medical care they need to get better.
We do it because it's what oil rig workers deserve for the risks they take on behalf of their country's most vital needs. More importantly, we do it because it's the right thing to do—because companies only do the right thing when you force them to under the law.
Equipment failure, safety protocol failure, communication failure—these are the sort of mistakes that injure, traumatize, and kill oil rig workers. These accidents are preventable. They can be stopped if companies choose safety over production speed and value lives over profit.
Here are some of the worst oil rig accidents in history:
Unfinished maintenance and bad communication during a shift-change resulted in the single worst offshore disaster in history and the death of 167 crew members. During routine maintenance, a pressure safety valve was removed from a condensate-injection pump during the day, but the job was never finished by the time the other crew came in. No one told the night crew not to use the pump, so a leak was created that triggered a series of explosions.
This oil rig disaster happened due to a failed bracing on one of the platform's five legs. This created a chain reaction failure of each leg, resulting in the entire platform capsizing in the North Sea during a storm. Of the 212 workers on the platform, only 89 survived.
This drillship was located in the South China Sea, where it was operating while Typhoon Gay devastated the region. It presumably remained in place during the storm. Investigators aren't sure about the sequence of events of this disaster because the ship capsized so quickly that the crew sent no distress signal and was unable to respond to the emergency. Of the 97 crew members, 91 died.
The Ocean Ranger, owned by Mobil Oil of Canada, was capsized in a storm that was creating 65-foot waves. One of the porthole windows in the ballast control room broke, allowing the room to flood. As a result, the ballast control panel was malfunctioning and contributed to the rig's capsizing. The crew took to the lifeboats to abandon the rig, but only one of the lifeboats could launch. As a result, 84 workers drowned.
Our oil rig worker injury law firm has served countless offshore workers and families in a multitude of accidents. We help workers when pipes crush their hands and left them with no way to work. We help workers when they slip and fall on an ill-maintained deck, or tumble down unsafe stairs, or suffer severe burns on the job.
$171 million won for the victims of a massive explosion. Our team never gave up, investigated the case for years, and eventually secured a massive settlement for our clients.
$97 million obtained for workers who were injured while working for one of the largest global corporations in the world. The defendant refused to settle until the weight of our investigation compelled them to make things right.
$44 million for the survivor of a crane accident that robbed him of a leg. The employer clearly hadn't created a safe environment, which resulted in our client losing a limb and taking away the income his family depended on.
$39.7 million for a burn injury victim who needed multiple surgeries before trial was even finished. His verdict ensured that he would get all his past and future medical care paid for.
On April 20, 2010, a blowout on BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig led to one of the worst oil rig accidents in US history. Eleven workers were killed in an explosion that could be seen for 40 miles and a fire that emergency responders were unable to extinguish. The oil rig eventually sank, allowing the well to spill 200 million gallons into the Gulf.
Injured crew members were taken to shore...where an even worse surprise was awaiting them. Many of them were put up in hotel rooms (not a hospital) and were asked to sign a piece of paper in order to receive care. A few of the crew recognized what was going on: BP was going into cover-up mode.
For those that did get care, treatment didn't seem adequate and the doctors (chosen by the company) seemed dismissive of their injuries. Some of them wanted to see their own doctors but had a hard time doing so. Twenty-seven crew members called Arnold & Itkin because they knew they had a fight on their hands—they knew that BP wasn't going to let them get the care that they needed. Our oil rig accident lawyers helped these crew members not only get the care they needed, but we helped them get the wages they lost from being unable to work. In the end, both the rig workers and their families were able to get justice while providing for their basic needs.
"Jason assured me that...he was going to be there to help me. He always asked if we needed anything...he always offered to help." James & Cheryl Kiger
"I was very happy [with my result]--that's another step in the healing process. I feel like I got what was just due to me, and I can move on." Donovan Calvin
"They don't back down.They stand up for what's right...This firm has impacted every aspect of my life: past, present, future. They pulled off some miracles." Chris Devall.
If you've been hurt in an oil rig accident, call our oil rig injury attorneys today. We want to help you get the medical care you need while replacing your income, allowing you to provide for yourself or your loved ones. Every case we've won happened because someone like you was willing to trust us—we don't take that trust lightly.
Here's how it works: call (888) 346-5024 or use our simple online form to tell us what happened. Our firm will schedule a meeting where you and one of our oil rig accident lawyers will go over your options. If we can help you, we'll cover all the costs of your case from beginning to end—you never receive a bill or an invoice, and we don't accept any upfront pay. You'll need it to recover. Every penny spent on your case, from hiring investigators to our own fee, is advanced against your verdict or settlement. We shoulder the risk of your case, so even if you win nothing, you'll never pay us a thing.
All it takes to get started is a phone call. Call (888) 346-5024 to schedule your free consultation.
Arnold & Itkin represented nearly a third of the crewmembers injured in the Deepwater Horizon explosion.
Because maritime law is so complex and so complicated, it is crucial that you work with an attorney who has an in-depth understanding of how it works and who has proven themselves in similar cases before.
