Explosion Injuries and Fatalities
The likelihood of suffering substantial or fatal injuries is high in an explosion accident. Explosions combine heat, force, and flying debris which put people in harm’s way. The most common causes of explosions are gas leaks. Typical injuries are head injuries, emotional trauma, scars, burns, or hearing loss from a loud blast. Fatalities can also result from an explosion. An experienced, trustworthy attorney can guide you and help you obtain compensation for explosion injuries.
Brain Injuries Due to Explosions
According to the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) website, brain injuries can occur without physical impact to the head. The primary blast wave is the most destructive form of energy released by an explosion. The blast wave can cause injuries to the ear, lungs, brain and other parts of the body.
Concussions as a result of blasts are caused by a blow to the head or sudden acceleration of the head. They are more likely to happen if you are near an explosion or if you were thrown into something while being near an explosion. If a concussion is not treated correctly it will lead to long-term disabilities such as headaches and memory loss.
Explosions Are Unexpected
Explosions in confined spaces are associated with greater morbidity (injury) and death (mortality). Explosions, like any accident, occur when least expected. You thus have no way to prepare for this catastrophic situation. Gas explosions can happen in the workplace, stores, restaurants, hotels, schools, homes, or most anywhere that fuel sources are supplied to buildings.
The explosion injury attorneys at the Blumenshine Law Group can help you hold those responsible for your injuries while handling all aspects of the legal process so healing and receiving treatment is your #1 priority.
Causes of Explosions
Defective Products
Many products carry a high degree of safety risk, and it is essential that companies ensure that their products are safe. Products as big as entire sections of pipe may be defective, or a flawed product could be as small as a tiny connector or part. A faulty product could be as simple as a poorly designed component, a poor production process, or inadequate warnings or instructions. Determining whether a faulty item was responsible for an explosion often requires intensive investigation and even reconstruction of accidents.
Pipeline and Propane Tank Explosions
The use of propane as a fuel source doesn't just pose a fire danger, but the tanks themselves can be susceptible to explosions if they are not used correctly.
The gas pipeline is a vital link in transporting gas throughout the country. These pipelines have been known to burst or leak and cause explosions. There have been instances when people who live near these pipelines have been killed by the ruptures, while other times people have died because they were working on the pipelines and lacked adequate training.
Chemical Explosions
Chemical explosions happen when the chemical exhibits physical, thermal, or chemical changes.
Chemical explosions are classified according to the type of substances that ignite. There are many different types of chemicals in factories and plants that can become explosive, but some chemicals explode more violently and easily than others and can result in a toxic chemical cloud and lead to secondary effects such as building demolition. Because of these hazards, explosions are very dangerous occurrences.
Negligence
Improper training and gross disregard for safety procedures can result in devastating explosions. Risk of explosion may be intentionally caused by willful negligence such as adjusting valves improperly or using faulty equipment. These explosions can be because of an accumulation of gas, static electricity, or sparks.
The product risk of explosion may be intentionally caused by willful negligence such as adjusting valves improperly or using faulty equipment.
If someone's negligence causes another injury, they may be liable for the damage caused to the victim.
The first step in evaluating abuse of gross negligence is to determine what would qualify as gross negligence. Gross negligence can be defined as a demonstration of willful disregard for the life or property of others, or "acts so dangerously close to illegal that it is obvious that he or she intends to break the law."
If someone's behavior qualifies as gross negligence and if a person suffers damages because of their actions, then they are liable for those damages.
Types of Blast Injuries
- Auditory – hearing disruption, hearing loss
- Visual – eye damage
- Skin – cuts, burns, bleeding, lacerations
- Respiratory – breathing, lungs failure or collapse, nose collapse, pneumonia
- Brain – concussion, bleeding, spinal discs
- Internal – organ failure, digestive system damage
- Extremities – arm, hand, fingers, or leg amputation, fractures, ligament tears,
- Aggravation of preexisting conditions
Sample Illinois Cases
- $4,000,000: Gas leak - burns
- $3,000,000: Electric panel explosion – burns to abdomen, chest, and hand
- $1,500,000: Equipment explosion – brain injury, fractured arm, PTSD
- $1,300,000: Explosion construction site - burns
Financial Compensation for Explosion Injuries and Death
Successful recovery for injuries due to an explosion involves proving two main elements of explosions negligence case in Illinois: liability and damages.
- Liability requires an investigation into the ownership, management, and maintenance of the property and utilities. Of course, in building explosions because gas or electric supply is often involved, investigation of any mistakes or failures by the utility companies of services is needed.
- Damages are the physical, emotional injuries, injuries and economic losses such as medical expenses and income loss. At Blumenshine Law Group we undertake a methodical process to investigate and evaluate these factors on your behalf.
Explosion Injury Attorneys
We have the experience, resources, and knowledge to obtain Maximum Recovery – Minimum Time™ when seeking compensation for you. You will have an attentive legal team if you work with Blumenshine Law Group. If you or a loved one has fallen victim to an explosion, and you need answers about how to help secure compensation for your injuries, contact Blumenshine Law Group today for a free consultation by:
Phone/Text: (312)766-1000 available 24/7
Email: info@blg-legal.com