Pennsylvania Personal Injury Blog

According to an Associated Press article that appeared on Philly.com, one worker was killed and two others were injured on December 4 when a boiler failed at a Valero petroleum refinery in eastern Texas. The refinery employs about 480 people.

The article reported that the two people who were injured in the incident were in good condition.
A Valero Energy Co. spokesman did not confirm whether there had been an explosion or a fire during the failure without further investigation.

The worker who died and one of the injured were Valero employees. The other injured person was a contract worker who was taken to a hospital in Texas City.

After the boiler failed, the plant continued operating and there was no environmental damage.
The workers here as well as the family of the worker who died, would be well advised to contact an experienced worker’s compensation attorney who can carefully examine the incident to identify any negligence or wrongdoing. An experienced attorney would also look into a “third party claim.” These are claims that are filed against parties that are not the worker’s employer. It could be a contractor, a sub-contractor, or even the manufacturer of a defective product. If it is determined that one of those parties was responsible for the accident and any injuries, then they could be held liable.