The Dangers of Working in the Oil Field – Accidents and Injuries
Oil field workers work under some of the most dangerous conditions in the
country.
With America drilling for more oil than years past, oilfield accidents
continue to rise countrywide. Some reports show that oilfield workers are 7
times more likely to experience a fatal injury.
One must not underestimate the dangerous conditions under
which oilfield workers labor.
Those who have sustained an injury on the job can collect compensation.
The skilled oilfield injury attorneys at Fadduol, Cluff, Hardy, &
Conaway, P.C. have managed claims for hundreds of oilfield workers. We have
seen a wide array of on-the-job injuries.
It’s important that you hire an experienced oil field injury attorney to
manage your claim.
Personal Injury or Workers’ Compensation Claims in Oilfield Accidents
If an oilfield accident caused your injuries, contact an experienced
oilfield accident attorney. You should find a law firm that is familiar with
oil field accident cases. Even when you believe the injuries to be mild,
serious complications could arise.
In some cases, this may mean filing a claim with your employer’s workers
comp insurance. In other cases, it could mean thoroughly investigating the
scene for signs of negligence.
Sometimes, your employer’s own negligence is to blame. Other times it could
be the result of shoddy industrial equipment. In any of these cases, you’ll get
a better result if you have a skilled oil field injury lawyer advocating on
your behalf.
Common
Circumstances That Lead to Oilfield Injuries
Oilfield injuries are usually the
consequence of a speed and greed, top-down safety culture whereby oilfield
workers learn to take safety shortcuts, ignore standard industry safety protocols,
use inadequate equipment and are given improper safety instruction (or no
instruction at all).
There are many different ways that
serious and fatal injuries can occur out in the oilfield.
Common circumstances that lead to
accidents include the following:
- Inadequately trained workers put the lives of those
around them at risk.
- Exposure to hazardous gases and explosions, which is
often compounded by a failure to recognize the hazards and properly
communicate them through the use of JSAs.
- Language barriers lead to lack of knowledge of
surrounding circumstances.
- Overworked employees take shortcuts in order to get the
work done faster.
- Oil Industry drilling schedules put downward pressure
on the workers to complete the job timely at all costs.
- Defective equipment or poorly maintained machinery
creates an unsafe work environment.
- Company men are spread too thin and rarely show up to
the jobsite to ensure work is being performed safely.
- Failure to follow the chain of command.