Gas Blast at Connecticut Power Plant Kills at Least 5
On February 7, 2010, an explosion at the Kleen Energy Systems in Connecticut blew out the walls of an unfinished power plant and set off a fire during a test of natural gas lines. According to an article on Philly.com, the explosion killed at least five workers and injured a dozen or more.
The cause of the gas explosion was unknown and is under investigation. It left huge pieces of metal that once encased the plant peeling off its sides. A large swath of the structure was blackened and surrounded by debris, but the building, its roof and its two smokestacks were still standing.
The article said that 50 to 60 people were in the area at the time of the explosion, and multiple contractors were working on the project.
Workers for the construction company, O&G Industries, were purging the gas line when the explosion occurred.
At least a dozen people had injuries ranging from minor to very serious.
Safety board investigators have done extensive work on the issue of gas line purging since an explosion last year at a Slim Jim factory in North Carolina killed four people. They’ve identified other explosions caused by workers who were unsafely venting gas lines inside buildings.
The workers here who sustained any injuries and the families of the workers who died because of the explosion are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits through the employer. These benefits often are inadequate and may not be enough to cover a worker and his family, especially if the incident involves serious injuries that could keep the worker away from his/her job for a long time. It may be in the worker’s best interest, however, to also contact an experienced worker’s compensation attorney who can carefully examine the incident to identify any negligence or wrongdoing.
An experienced Philly workers comp 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.
Any worker who has sustained an injury arising out of and in the course of their employment has a potential workers’ compensation claim. The injury can occur while traveling on business, doing a work-related errand, attending a required business-related social function, or even while on a break or using restroom facilities and you are still legally covered by workers compensation.
Whether your injury was a simple slip and fall, or involves serious injuries, Cherry, Fieger, & Marciano can help you. These dedicated PA work injury lawyers will do everything possible to get the monetary compensation that is owed to you to help pay medical bills, physical therapy, loss of work and more.
Source article: http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/business/20100208_ap_gasblastatconnpowerplantkillsatleast5.html
