Construction Accident Leads to Wrongful Death

WORKER DIES IN CONSTRUCTION ACCIDENT

Vasquez v. Conoco Phillips Company; Central District Federal Court docket #06CV07828


Vasquez was working at ConocoPhillips’s Los Angeles Refinery. HMT company contracted with the defendant to install a new concrete and steel bottom floor in a tank on the premises. The tank was built by defendant Chicago Bridge & Iron in 1966. The tank had a floating roof that raised or lowered depending upon the amount of product loaded into the tank. During the maintenance, the floating roof was approximately 8 feet from the floor.
The morning of April 10, 2006 the floating roof collapsed onto several workers, including Mr. Vasquez. Vasquez was the most severely injured in the accident sustaining an amputation of the right arm among other things. He died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
The plaintiff (Vasquez’s wife and daughter) contended that the various defendants were negligent for failing to secure the roof.
The defendants argued that plaintiff and his company were responsible for the collapse. They argued that they did not secure the floating roof while working under it as prescribed in the safety handbook. Defendants also claimed that the plaintiff and his employer were aggressively jacking up the roof and support legs causing the ultimate rotation and collapse of the roof. Defendants argued that the support legs were bent at an angle due to the excessive and uneven jacking of the roof.
Just prior to trial all parties settled. The defendants agreed to pay a total of $6,100,000.00 to plaintiff and various other amounts to the other injured parties.

Attorney’s Penney and Associates handles all types of construction injuries and/or injuries sustained on the job in California. See www.penneyandassociates.com

Disclaimer

DISCLAIMER: here is the legal “mumbojumbo” that we need to say.


Any and all written material contained herein from Penney and Associates or its attorneys is for informational purposes and is not intended to be construed as legal advise. Any mention of cases or the results of such cases is not intended to advise concerning the value of similar cases. Nothing herein is intended to create an attorney-client relationship. Always consult with an attorney.