Exposure to electricity results in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries each year in the United States. At both work and at home, some electrocution mishaps involve negligence – unsafe working conditions, insufficient safety training, manufacture or design defects in appliances, shoddy work by a repairman or subcontractor, a utility's failure to properly fix or replace damaged power lines. (More information on power line injuries)
If you or a loved one suffered a severe electrical injury or death as a result of possible negligence, you may want to contact an electrical injury attorney for a free review of your case. Kline & Specter, PC, one of the nation’s top law firms with more than 50 attorneys, has unique lawyer/doctor teams to investigate and evaluate potential electrical injury lawsuits.
In December 2012 the firm won a $109 million verdict -- the largest personal injury verdict in Pennsylvania history -- in Allegheny County court for a woman who was severely burned and died after a high-voltage power line fell on her in front of her home. No adverse weather conditions existed at the time of the mishap. (See The Goretzka Case.)
In another case, Shanin Specter in 2008 negotiated a $35 million settlement on behalf of more than 100 entities whose business were damaged or destroyed by a huge fire – believed to have started in an electrical panel box -- at the former Continental Business Center in Bridgeport, Pa. Among the defendants in the case were the center’s owner, the manufacturer of the panel box, electrical contractors and insurance company inspectors.
Electrical current exposure can result in a wide range of injuries, including skin burns as well as internal burns that can cause swelling and compression of the arteries, cutting off blood supply to the limbs. It can cause deadly abnormal heart rhythms, kidney damage and even cataracts.
In some cases, an electrical jolt can cause a bad fall, resulting in dislocations or broken bones. Nerve damage to the spinal cord can result in paralysis, numbness, chronic pain or erectile dysfunction. Electrical damage to the nerves and brain can manifest in seizures, brain hemorrhages, short-term memory loss, personality changes and difficulty sleeping.
Many of the serious injuries and deaths due to electrocution occur in the workplace, with about 250 reported annually. In addition, nearly 3,000 yearly are hurt badly enough in electrical mishaps to miss work to recuperate.
Leading causes of workplace electrocutions include contact (often with metal ladders) with overhead power lines and contact with wiring, transformers or other electrical components. Machines, tools, appliances and light fixtures also are often involved.
Kline & Specter, with 50 experienced attorneys, several of whom are also highly regarded doctors, is one of the nation's leading law firms with the ability to litigate electrical injury and power line accident claims. Call us at 800-243-1100 for a free case evaluation.