Despite advancement in modern safety equipment, back injuries remain a common risk for mariners.
The kind of back injuries a seaman may suffer depends on the conditions at the time of the accident. If you make the same lifting or movement mistake for weeks, months, or even years owing to a lack of training or back brace availability, your back injury could be a muscle, nerve, bone strain, or other degeneration. If you were in an accident that caused a direct impact on your back, your back injury could include fractures, rips, or breaking.
Some of the causes of back injuries are listed below:
Years of lifting cargo when loading and unloading ships can result in spinal disc degeneration, which can cause unbearable pain
Being hit by heavy gear
Slipping and falling on a wet or slick deck
A collision with moving cargo
Excessive fatigue
Better work design could have prevented at least one-third of typical back injuries. The maritime employee’s workweek is full of risks for maritime injuries like back injuries due to heavy equipment, labor-intensive duties, and slippery and uneven surfaces. With the proper measures, equipment, and safety education, the majority of these maritime injuries can be avoided.
However, numerous maritime employers are careless and fail to take critical precautions. If you work for a maritime employer, vessel owner, or ship operator that has been irresponsible in mitigating safety hazards and have sustained a back injury, you should call an expert maritime injury attorney to help you fight your case.
Back injuries caused by maritime accidents can lead to:
Injuries to the bones and tissues, spinal cord, or direct trauma to the spinal cord. A severed spinal cord or other forms of paralysis may arise from these traumas.
Cracked vertebrae can result from an injury to the spinal column caused by strong collisions or falls. Pinched nerves, reduced mobility, and even paralysis can all arise from fractured vertebrae.
Disc injuries are among the most common maritime injuries. Lifting injuries might play a factor in a herniated or slipped disc. Disc degeneration is caused by the wear and tear of spinal discs over time, and it can be hastened by performing heavy physical labor.
Strains and sprains are two different types of back injuries. Strains or sprains in the muscles can result in severe pain when lifting and shifting heavy things.
A person who constantly handles cargo, crab pots, and heavy gear, causing constant tugging, pushing, twisting, carrying, and other stress on the worker's back, could incur a significant back injury if the employer fails to teach adequate safety techniques to that individual. If a maritime employer fails to teach adequate safety methods and techniques, as well as supply appropriate gear, it may be liable for money damages under maritime law.
It is imperative that you should get medical aid as early as you can. You should also inform your employer of any incident or illness as soon as you can. Then contact an offshore lawyer as quickly as you can. Mariner Law, PLLC can use negotiation and civil litigation as a means to secure you maximum compensation in your case. If a loved one perished in a drowning disaster while working in the maritime industry, you might be entitled to damages under federal maritime law. A maritime law remedy such as the Jones Act, LHWCA, unseaworthiness, or maintenance and cure may be available to help.
Back injuries on the water can be life altering for victims. Get the help you need now by calling a Jones Act lawyer at (253) 600-2531. Maritime lawyer Adam Deitz at Mariner Law, PLLC has the compassion, skill, knowledge, and resources to safeguard your rights to compensation. The firm proudly serves mariner clients in Washington, Oregon, New York, Connecticut, Alaska, and nationwide.