Month: June 2018

Preventing NC Lake Electrocutions

Posted on by Miriah Millis Yanez

Electrocutions by drowning in a lake or pool are considered by some to be “freak accidents.” The reality is that they happen a lot more often than you might think, and are often the result of someone’s negligence.

Potential for Electrocution in NC Lakes, Rivers, Pools

Being electrocuted while swimming in a lake, river, or pool is not something you might consider when taking a refreshing dip. But it happens. A 17-year-old Raleigh lifeguard was electrocuted and drowned in 2017 when she tested the water at a public pool where she worked. Negligence and “shoddy workmanship” was alleged to be the reason the water became charged, and the parents have filed a lawsuit.

How Does Drowning by Electrocution Occur?

When you are swimming in water that becomes charged, your body seizes up and you are unable to move or swim away. One of the reasons you see “No Swimming” signs at public docks and marinas is to prevent electrocution by keeping swimmers at least 150 feet away from the dock, which authorities claim is usually a safe distance.

If you own a dock on Lake Norman, Lake Gaston, Kerr Lake, or on any NC waterway, or if you run electricity to any body of water, make sure a licensed electrician checks the wiring at least every two years. Incidentally electric shock can occur in any body of water, however, experts say fresh is more of a conductor than salt water.

Safety Tips to Help Deter Electrocutions in NC Lakes

    • Use a plastic ladder, rather than a metal one, so it won’t help to facilitate transfer electricity into the water

 

    • If you start to feel a tingle in the water, swim away from the dock, which is where most electrical issues occur

 

    • Check all of the wiring around your dock, including your ground fault circuit breaker.

 

    • Purchase a Dock Lifeguard, a device that detects electricity on your dock and in the water around your dock.

 

Electrocutions Can Happen Near Boats

Boats can have faulty wiring too, which can charge the water around it.  Two boys were electrocuted in a large lake while swimming between houseboats. It was determined that the wiring was faulty on one of the houseboats and it charged the water, killing one boy and severely injuring the other.

If you are a boat owner, you should have a marine electrician periodically check your boat’s wiring and fix any problems.

If you or a loved one have been hurt by electrocution in a North Carolina lake, river, or pool,
call us today at 1-866-900-7078 for a free case evaluation.

Electrocution Accidents, Injuries, Deaths

Electrocution is generally classified as death by electric shock. Yet, it also encompasses a wide range of injuries from contact with electricity. Here are the four primary types of electrocution injuries, as defined by the U.S. National Library of Medicine:

    • Cardiac arrest

 

    • Muscle, nerve, and tissue destruction

 

    • Thermal burns from contact with an electrical source

 

    • Falling or other similar injuries associated from an electrical shock

 

If a person is electrocuted in the water and survives, they could potentially suffer long-term effects, including:

    • Headaches

 

    • Amnesia or short-term memory loss

 

    • Mood swings

 

    • Mental illnesses including depression, anxiety, aggression, and schizophrenia

 

Drowning by Electrocution Liability

Drownings by electrocution are almost always a result of negligence, including faulty equipment and poor maintenance, human error, poor workmanship. Potentially liable parties may include:

    • Property owners

 

    • Power companies

 

    • Equipment and boat operators

 

    • Contractors or operators responsible for repairs and past maintenance

 

North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyers Offer Free Case Evaluation

If your loved one drowned by electrocution or was injured by an electrical shock of any kind, contact us or call 1-866-900-7078 for a free case evaluation. You could be compensated for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, or wrongful death.

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Don’t Let an FCE Derail Your Right to Workers’ Comp Benefits

Posted on by Ryan Bliss

Is your workers’ compensation doctor recommending a Functional Capacity Evaluation, often referred to as an FCE? If so, I’m sure you have lots of questions. While an FCE can be a useful tool to explore your physical limitations after a work-related injury, there are certain things you need to know before moving forward.

Have you been asked to complete a Functional Capacity Evaluation? Before you proceed, consult with an experienced workers’ compensation attorney for advice.

What Is an FCE?

What to expect at a functional capacity evaluation (FCE).

I like to think of an FCE as a physical therapy session on steroids.

FCEs are typically scheduled at a physical therapist’s office, where you will be asked to perform a number of physical tasks over a designated period of time. You should expect to spend approximately three to four hours completing the testing. While all evaluators conduct their FCEs differently, you will likely be asked to walk, lift, stretch, push, pull, bend, and possibly do other exercises. The evaluator will record each task you complete and the extent to which you are able (or unable) to complete it.

However, an FCE is not a simulation of the actual work you were performing when you were injured. For that reason, the results of an FCE may not provide a definitive answer as to whether or not you are able to return to your pre-injury job. In a workers’ compensation context, the FCE report is typically forwarded to, and interpreted by, your authorized treating physician.

Why Does My Doctor Want Me to Complete an FCE?

FCEs are commonly used to determine return‐to‐work readiness and quantify your functional limitations after a work-related injury. Most doctors are not trained to make comprehensive determinations regarding your physical abilities. Therefore, they require a little outside help. That’s where the FCE comes in.

However, sometimes it may not be in your best interest for a doctor to rely too heavily on an FCE to determine which jobs you are physically capable of performing. FCEs are often treated as the best way to determine your work abilities; in my experience, that’s probably not the case.

As noted above, the data from your FCE must be interpreted by your treating physician and applied to real world jobs. Unfortunately, they often don’t take into account the day-to-day rigors of your actual occupation. For that reason, it’s very important for you to educate your doctor about the essential functions and physical demands of your job before they make a determination about your readiness to return to work.

What Do I Need to Know Before I Perform My FCE?

Discuss FCE results with our doctor to address any issues you encountered during testing.

Most FCE facilities believe they are able to determine when someone is exaggerating their symptoms or failing to give 100% effort during testing. In my opinion, the “science” behind these methods is shaky at best. Even so, the evaluator’s findings will often make it into the FCE report, which is likely to be seen by your doctor. For this reason, it’s important for you to talk to the FCE evaluator prior to testing about their expectations of you. You should plan to at least attempt any task you believe you are physically capable of performing and give the maximum amount of safe effort.

FCEs are just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to your overall physical limitations and ability to return to the workforce. You should always discuss the results with your doctor and be sure to address any issues you encountered during testing.

Enlist the Help of Experienced Workers’ Comp Professionals

If you have additional questions about FCEs, contact an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer at the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin.

If you are asked to get an FCE, I urge you to get legal advice by contacting us or calling 1-866-900-7078. If we are able to take your case, we will try to ensure that you are well prepared for your FCE, and we will fight to protect your workers’ compensation rights.

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Potential Lawsuits Grow as GenX Concerns Escalate

Posted on by Gary Jackson

If the increasing number of inquiries we have been getting from NC property owners are an indication of what’s to come, there’s a potentially massive property value issue in the southeastern portion of our state. And a potentially massive health crisis.

Property owners have been contacting us over fears of water contamination from GenX.

GenX is in the molecularly close-knit family of super toxins known as perfluoroalkyls and polyfluoroalkyls (PFAS), which are used to make Teflon-type products. The toxin has seeped from the DuPont Chemours Fayetteville plant into the Cape Fear River and has infiltrated wells and municipal water supplies in at least three counties. No one knows how to filter it out.

GenX is said to be so toxic that even one drop dissolved into 20 Olympic sized pools may pose health risks.

Contamination by the same family of chemicals may date back as far as 1980, according to a DuPont spokesperson. Experts are only scraping the surface of the potential for widespread harms after decades of contamination.

Just recently, additional testing by the state and Chemours has expanded contamination concerns to include air, rainwater, honey, wild game, and fruits and vegetables grown in the area.

Property owners have been contacting us over fears of water contamination from GenX. If you or a loved one have suffered from GenX river contamination, call us today at 1-866-900-7078 for a free case evaluation.

Diminished Property Values in Wilmington, Pender, Brunswick, New Hanover

If you own property in the Wilmington area, or Pender, Brunswick, or New Hanover counties, your property values may be diminished 10% to 30% due to contaminated drinking water discovered in wells and municipal water treatment plants. You may not even be able to sell your property at all.

GenX. Same Toxic Chemical. Benign New Name.

GenX is the chemical cousin to DuPont’s C8, which poisoned tens of thousands of residents and livestock along the Ohio River Valley. DuPont recently settled lawsuits for over $670 million for knowingly releasing C8 into mid-Ohio Valley streams and tributaries that flowed into the Ohio River.

The U.S. government has since banned C8 from being produced in the U.S. because of its extreme toxicity and its ability to exist indefinitely in the environment. DuPont complied by discontinuing production of C8. Instead, they tinkered with its molecular structure to create a similar chemical, and gave it a new benign-sounding name – GenX.

You say potato, I say potaahto. No matter what you call it, this chemical is in the same toxic family of perfluoroalkyls and polyfluoroalkyls.

Is History Repeating Itself?

Is GenX to the Cape Fear River what C8 was to the Ohio River?

This is a thought-provoking question and no one knows the answer at this point. Studies are proliferating on the potential harms GenX may have already posed or could potentially pose to humans, animals, and the environment.

Here is what we do know. Many North Carolina residents may have been drinking and bathing in extremely contaminated water, potentially since 1980. Not only has this created a potential health issue, but property values may potentially be affected.

As a result, many North Carolina residents are suing the Chemours Company and DuPont.

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