Containing or bordering more than 500 miles of the Mississippi River and with more than 300 miles of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, Louisiana is the nation’s leading state in waterborne transportation and seafood production. Both inland barge traffic and oceangoing ships and commercial fishing vessels abound in the state creating thousands of maritime jobs. The state has an extensive lock and dam system on inland waterways that allows commercial vessels to connect to the Mississippi River. Many maritime businesses based in Louisiana serve the offshore oil industry. The incidence of ship accidents and collisions depends in part on ship traffic, and the Mississippi River, Intracoastal Waterway and Gulf are heavily used by commercial ships and vessels.
If you are a Jones Act seaman and you have been injured while working on a commercial vessel on the Mississippi River or the Gulf of Mexico, you may have legal rights to compensation under the federal maritime law. After suffering a marine vessel injury, you may be facing substantial medical bills and time off work, so it’s important to understand your legal rights to full compensation. Families of maritime workers who die in preventable accidents may be entitled to compensation as well.
The lawyers at Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., are maritime attorneys licensed to practice in Louisiana and Texas. If you have been injured in a towboat accident, a commercial fishing accident or an offshore accident, it’s important to make the right call when choosing a Jones Act attorney to represent you. Call 800-773-6770 or fill out the online contact form to receive a free initial consultation.
Louisiana Marine Accident Injury Lawyers
Louisiana’s oil and gas production is heavily dependent upon offshore activities. Nearly 80 percent of the nation’s offshore oil and gas comes through Louisiana ports and terminals. The ports carry nearly 500 million tons of commerce annually, which is almost one fifth of all waterborne commerce in the United States each year. Yet the hazards of offshore work remain a daily concern for platform workers who understand the unique demands of the job.
Offshore workers and platform workers can sustain serious head injuries, traumatic brain injuries, back injuries and spinal injuries while performing routine tasks such as lifting of pipe, construction, hooking and unhooking loads and working around heavy equipment. Crane accidents pose a serious risk of injury to deckhands, roughnecks and roustabouts who help out with crane operations on offshore rigs. A rigger can be struck on the head by a swinging load or be crushed by a dropped load if a sling breaks.
If you are an offshore worker or a supply vessel deckhand and have been injured, you may have substantial medical bills and be unable to work for an extended period. You need to clearly understand your rights to maintenance and cure and other benefits under maritime law. A Louisiana offshore injuries lawyer at Gordon, Elias and Seely, L.L.P., can explain your rights under maritime law after a serious offshore injury.
Maritime Injury Lawyers in Louisiana
Louisiana has a number of large ports, such as the port of New Orleans and Port of South Louisiana, that handle the cargo of oceangoing ships, bulk carriers and cargo tankers from the Gulf of Mexico. Tugboat crews often assist large ships in gaining anchorage or getting out of port and move barge tows on inland waterways. But it’s dangerous work, particularly when a seaman is exhausted from many hours on duty without rest.
Serious accidents are unfortunately common. A deckhand’s foot or leg can get crushed between two barges. A line can entangle your hand and cause a devastating loss of limb. Falls from ladders, unguarded ledges and heights can cause spinal damage or a traumatic head injury. A serious spinal injury can leave you physically unable to return to work and unable to earn income to support your family.
Jones Act seamen also are susceptible to serious injury as tows and barges are transiting Louisiana’s system of locks. Louisiana has more than two dozen locks on its waterways. A number of the locks connect waterways to the Mississippi River. The Gulf Intracoastal Waterway also has six heavily used locks. Older locks that do not accommodate longer modern tows of barges require the uncoupling and reconnecting of barges. Situations for potential injuries abound. Suffering a crushed hand or foot or the loss of a limb if entangled in cables while securing barges, boat collisions, falling overboard while uncoupling barges or be pinned between a vessel and a gate if a gate has a strong outdraft and a barge or towboat moves unexpectedly, are just a few scenarios.
Maritime employers have a duty to provide a seaworthy vessel and maintain equipment adequately. Unfortunately many marine vessel injuries are caused by a maritime employer’s failure to provide an adequately trained crew or equipment failure.
At Gordon, Elias and Seely, L.L.P., we hold maritime employers accountable when a serious marine vessel injury or offshore accident is a result of employer negligence or another crew member’s carelessness. Speak with one of our Louisiana maritime attorneys. We have helped many families on the Gulf put their lives back together after a devastating injury or loss.
Louisiana Fishing Vessel Accident Lawyer
One out of every 70 jobs in Louisiana is related to seafood. Shrimping, oysters, crabs and other seafood are vital to many Louisiana families’ livelihood. But a serious fishing vessel accident can turn your life upside down and leave you with a stack of medical bills and no income. Commercial fishing and shrimping in the Gulf of Mexico is rewarding but dangerous work, and injuries are common. More than 100 commercial fishermen died in the Gulf of Mexico from 2000 to 2009, including many from falls overboard and from traumatic on-board injuries.
Many serious fishing vessel accidents and deadly accidents could have been avoided if the vessel owner had been more attentive to proper vessel upkeep and equipment maintenance and focused on crew safety. Talk to a Louisiana maritime lawyer who has a thorough understanding of the Fishing Vessel Safety Act and how it applies to your accident. If you were injured through the carelessness of a vessel owner or another crew member, you may have a claim.
The Louisiana fishing vessel accident attorneys at Gordon, Elias and Seely are committed to holding negligent fishing vessel owners accountable if they endanger the safety and health of a Jones Act seaman. We’ll review your accident at no charge and talk you through your legal options.
Call Louisiana Marine Vessel Accident Lawyer
If you are a barge or tugboat deckhand, an offshore worker, or a commercial fisherman working on a shrimp or crab boat in Louisiana and have been injured in a marine-related job through the fault of another, you may have legal rights to compensation under federal law. The Louisiana maritime attorneys at Gordon, Elias and Seely, L.L.P., can make sure you understand your rights under the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act.
Call 800-773-6770 or fill out the online contact form to receive a free initial consultation.
