Shreveport Jones Act Lawyer | Louisiana Maritime Law Attorneys
Everyday cargo arrives and departs from Shreveport, Louisiana by water. Much of the cargo is bulk goods, and the maritime workers who transport it are at constant risk of serious injury in marine vessel accidents. If you are a deckhand, engineer, tankerman, cook or captain and have been injured in a marine vessel accident caused by another, contact a Louisiana law firm that represents injured Jones Act seamen and maritime workers.
The law office of Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., is proud to help the hardworking men and women who earn a living moving cargo on the Red River, the Mississippi River and other inland waterways. We put our experience and dedication behind every Jones Act and admiralty law case we handle.
Whether you have been injured on a tug or tow boat, a barge, or a loved one has suffered a wrongful death, we can help if you have suffered because of someone else's negligence. We represent clients across the Gulf Coast, including the Shreveport area. Our firm has attorneys licensed to practice throughout Louisiana and Texas.
Call 800-773-6770 or fill out the online contact form to receive a free initial consultation. Mr. Gordon, Mr. Elias or Mr. Seely will be glad to answer your questions. They answer the phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Shreveport Maritime Attorneys
Shreveport is located in Northwest Louisiana about 15 miles east of the Texas border. It is the third largest city in Louisiana. Shreveport is just west of the Red River. Shreveport’s sister city, Bossier City, is on the opposite bank. The Port of Shreveport-Bossier just south of town is at the head of navigation on the Red River, a tributary of the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers. Every month, the port handles dozens of barges containing cargoes of petroleum, potash, frac sand, soda ash, steel coil, lumber, aggregate and fertilizer. Unfortunately accidents on towboats and barges remain all too common. Deckhands, mates, engineers and other crew can suffer serious head, brain injuries, neck injuries and back injuries.
If you are a deckhand on a towboat or barge or a dock worker based in Shreveport who has been injured in a maritime-related job, you may have legal rights under federal law. An experienced Shreveport maritime lawyer at Gordon, Elias and Seely, L.L.P., can explain your rights as a Jones Act seaman or harbor worker and make sure you receive full compensation after a serious injury.
The attorneys at Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., are maritime lawyers licensed to practice in Louisiana and Texas. If you have been injured in a towboat accident or suffered injuries in a marine vessel accident, it’s important to make the right call when choosing an experienced Jones Act attorney to represent you. Call 800-773-6770 or fill out the online contact form to receive a free initial consultation.
Maritime Injury Lawyers in Shreveport, Louisiana
The port of Shreveport-Bossier is one of the nation’s fastest growing inland ports. It is about 180 miles from the Gulf of Mexico and the farthest north that the river is commercially navigable for barge traffic. Barges moved a record 70,000 tons of cargo through the port in January 2012. The port accounts for approximately 7,600 jobs in Caddo and Bossier parishes, according to a Louisiana State University economist.
Cargo is transferred to train and trucks at the Port of Shreveport-Bossier to move further inland. But the transfer must be done carefully to avoid injury to port workers. In any busy port, dock workers, crane operators, riggers, deckhands and longshoremen are at risk of serious injury, including head injury, back injury, neck injury, closed head injury, crushing injuries, crane accident injuries and forklift injuries. The use of heavy equipment such as deck cranes and mobile cranes to load and off-load cargo from barges and vessels poses a risk of injury if there is miscommunication. Dock workers, riggers and deckhands can suffer serious injury when working in the fall zone of a crane if struck by a swinging load, a dropped load or an unsecured load.
The frequency of crane accident injuries and fatalities recently prompted the federal government to strengthen rules applying to the operation of cranes on barges, floating cranes and mobile cranes. Crane operators must be certified to operate equipment with lifting capacity of more than a ton. The rules also created an expectation that riggers involved in hooking and unhooking loads and signalers be qualified. Marine employers who don’t train workers to operate equipment safely may be held legally liable for a serious injury accident.
If you’ve been injured while employed on a barge, towboat or vessel or in a land-based marine job, you may have legal rights to compensation under federal law. It’s important to talk to a Shreveport maritime lawyer who understands workers’ rights under the Jones Act and Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act. A maritime attorney at Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., will review your marine accident and provide an initial consultation free of charge.
Shreveport, Louisiana, Tow Boat Injury Attorney
Tow boats move barges with thousands of tons of cargo along the Red River between Shreveport and the Mississippi River. But the marine towing industry has cut the size of crews on many vessels, increasing the risk of marine vessel injuries.
Injuries are most common among deckhands and mates, many of whom are dangerously fatigued from overwork because of short-handed crews. Accidents may happen while a deckhand or Jones Act seaman is handling lines, loading or unloading cargo, disembarking or when the boat moves unexpectedly. Miscommunication, piloting errors, navigation equipment failures, wrong decisions and inattention can lead to serious accidents on the river.
If you have been injured in a towboat or barge accident, talk to a Shreveport maritime attorney about your legal options. The maritime lawyers at Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., are licensed to practice in Louisiana and Texas and have helped many Louisiana families recover from a serious injury or loss.
Shreveport Lock Accident Lawyer | Shreveport Lock Injury Attorney
The Red River south of Shreveport has a series of five locks and dams that allow commercial vessels to navigate the river year round. The five locks function as stair steps, lifting vessels 140 feet. The locks are Lock #1 near Marksville, Lock and Dam #2 between Marksville and Alexandria, Lock and Dam #3 near Colfax, Lock and Dam #4 near Coushatta, and Lock and Dam #5 near Shreveport.
Moving large tows of barges remains dangerous work. Narrower locks require the unhooking and reconnecting of barges. Deckhands may fall overboard while uncoupling barges or get pinned between a vessel and a gate if a barge or towboat shifts suddenly. A strong outdraft on a lock gate can cause a barge or towboat to shift suddenly and slam into a gate. A towboat deckhand or crew worker may suffer a back injury, a knee injury, loss of a limb or a fatal fall in a lock accident.
Crew on towboats pushing barges of flammable fuels may be burned or injured if a barge catches fires. A Shreveport lock accident attorney can assist if you or a loved one has been injured or suffered a wrongful death in a lock accident, through the fault of another.
Contact Shreveport, Louisiana, Marine Vessel Injury Lawyer
If you are an offshore worker or maritime worker in Shreveport or Bossier City and have marine vessel injuries or offshore injuries, you have legal rights as a Jones Act seaman or harbor and dock worker under federal law to claim compensation. A Shreveport maritime lawyer at Gordon, Elias and Seely, L.L.P., can help after a serious offshore injury.
Call 800-773-6770 or fill out the online contact form to receive a free initial consultation. Mr. Gordon and Mr. Elias will be glad to answer your questions.
