Burn Injury

Maritime Burn Injury Attorney

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Legal Representation for Victims of Maritime Burns

A maritime burn injury can have lifelong effects. In addition to the pain of serious injuries, it can prevent you from returning from work. Maritime employees like oil rig workers, and other offshore employees, work with scalding hot liquids, oil, gas, flammable chemicals, and electrical equipment. As a result, offshore workers face the daily threat of electrical accidents, fires, and explosions. If offshore workers do not have the proper safety equipment or were not trained on the proper safety procedures, they risk a burn injury. If you or a loved one suffered a life-altering injury, a maritime burn injury attorney today.

Whether the maritime burn injury was immediate and caused directly by the accident or the victim later required a surgery to remove the limb, our leading Maritime Burn Injury Attorney Reed Morgan can help. Morgan has achieved several significant trial victories and settlements for victims of offshore burn injuries. Our law firm backs Morgan with more than 40 years of experience protecting the rights of injured clients. We have the resources to assist you in getting the recovery you deserve. If you have an injury from an offshore burn injury, contact our firm today. We will advocate for your rights and get the compensation you need for your recovery.

Various Causes Of A Burn Injury

One of the most common types of injuries aboard commercial vessels and oil platforms is a burn injury. This particular injury is extremely difficult to recover from and can leave an injured worker out of a job for a very long time. Accidents that occur on these vessels are subject to maritime law and the Jones Act, which may allow offshore workers who sustain burn injuries to recover financial compensation from his or her employer.

• Fires and explosions
• Steam
• Contact with hot machinery, fluids
• Negligent maintenance of engines, compressors
• Careless storage and disposal of flammable substances
• Inadequate or defective fire suppression equipment
• Failure to enforce a smoking ban
• Electrocution

If you or a loved one is living with burn injuries, contact our firm today. A maritime burn injury from The Carlson Law Firm can help you get the compensation you deserve to begin the healing process.

Potential Maritime Burn Injury Hazards

Burn injuries are common in the home, but they are also one of the most common offshore injuries. It doesn’t seem like fire would be a threat when completely surrounded by water. However, a fire on a sea vessel can spread quickly. Because the ship is a confined space, it can lead to far more severe burns than on land. Maritime burn injuries can occur for a number of reasons:

Explosion. The vessel’s fuel and even the fuel used to power onboard equipment is combustible. With improper use or defects, fuel can be the source of a serious explosion that can quickly cause a fire.

Engine room fire. Malfunctioning engine equipment can ignite and create a dangerous situation.

Equipment malfunctions. In addition to engine and fuel, other equipment used in the course of your work on a ship can malfunction and start a fire.

A kitchen accident. A burn injury in a ship’s galley is just as likely as it is in your home kitchen. However, the close quarters on board may increase the risk of fire and maritime burn injury.

Electrical. Most ships house a generator room. This room is often the hub of the electrical systems on the ship. When electrical rooms are not maintained properly, an offshore worker can be electrocuted or a fire may start leading to burns.

A maritime burn injury can lead to a loss of quality of life. You need to focus on your recovery, not on how you’re going to pay for your recovery. Let The Carlson Law Firm help you get the medical treatment you need. With a maritime burn injury attorney by your side, you can level the playing field against big corporations. We can help you or your loved one get the compensation you need for your recuperation.

Anatomy of the Skin

Skin is one of our more important organs. It controls the fluid and temperature regulation of the body. Additionally, your skin serves as a protective barrier against bacteria and viruses that live outside of the body. Naturally, if the skin is injured, the ability to maintain control your body’s temperature can be lost. And the body’s natural barrier is compromised leaving you open to infection. Because of its complexity, the skin has many layers that burns can affect. Depending on how deep a burn goes, determines how the burn is classified.

Epidermis: the outer layer of skin

Dermis: made up of collagen and elastic fibers. The dermis is where nerves, blood vessels, sweat glands and hair follicles can be found.

Hypodermis or subcutaneous tissue: This is where larger blood vessels and nerves are located. In fact, this is the layer of tissue that is most important to temperature regulation.

Classification: Depth of Burns

Burns are classified by the amount of damage a burn does. The level of a burn depends on its location, depth and how much of the body surface it involves. However, chemicals can also cause burns. Additional sources of burns include electricity, radiation and sunlight. On a ship, the most common causes of burns are through scalding. Burns from fire, steam, hot gases and liquids are the usual blame for a maritime burn injury.

Burns are classified by severity:

• First-degree burns: This injury is comparable to a sunburn. The victim may experience minor pain and redness (erythema) of the epidermis (the top layer of skin). This category of burn will heal over a few days, however, some evidence suggests that these burns may be associated with an increased risk of skin cancer later in life.
• Second-degree burns: The damage caused by a second-degree burn is more extensive. The damage extends to the lower layers of the skin—the papillary or reticular dermis. Blisters are likely to form, and the site will be moist and extremely painful to the touch. This category of burn is subject to bacterial infection and cellulitis. It can take several weeks or month to heal from a second-degree burn.
• Third-degree burns: All layers of skin are charred and appear dry and leathery. Nerves are damaged, therefore the site is usually painless. When damage is this extensive, natural healing is impossible; the skin must be surgically excised and skin grafts used. The chance of infection is very high.
• Fourth-degree burns: Damage to the skin is so deep that muscle tissue and bone are charred. Burns are present in all layers (skin, muscle, bones and tendons) and risk infection. A fourth-degree burn is a life-threatening injury that may require amputation or extensive plastic surgery.

Classification: Surface Body Area Burned

In addition to the depth of the burn, the total surface area of the burn factors in how to your burn is classified. Burns are measured by the percentage of total area affected. Often, doctors use the “rule of nines” to measure the severity of burns. This calculation is based on the fact that each of the following parts corresponds to approximately 9 percent of the adult body:

• Head= 9 percent
• Chest (front)= 9 percent
• Abdomen (front)= 9 percent
• Upper/mid/low back and buttock= 18 percent
• Each arm= 9 percent
• Groin= 1 percent
• Each leg= 18 percent total (front= 9 percent, back= 9 percent)

Patients with burns involving less than 20 percent of their body will likely be fine. However, patients with more than 50 percent of burns to their body have increased risks for death. For example, if both legs, the groin, and the chest are burned, then 55 percent of the body is burned. This can lead to a decrease in the quality of life or possibly even death. If you or a loved one suffered a serious maritime burn injury, contact our firm today. A Maritime Burn Injury Attorney can help get you the treatment you need to move forward with your life.

Treating Burns

Regardless of the type of burn, inflammation or fluid accumulation can occur around the burn site. In less severe cases, cooling and cleaning burns can help reduce inflammation and the risk of infection. However, it is important to remember that second or third-degree burns comprise your skin and increase your risks for infection. In more severe cases, medical treatment is necessary to prescribe antibiotics to decrease the chance of infection. Doctors may dress the burns or apply creams to keep out infections and help speed up the healing process. 

Maritime Respiratory Injuries from Fires

In addition to physical burns, offshore workers risk suffering suffocation when a fire breaks out on their sea vessel. There are three components to these injuries:

• Oxygen-depleted air: An active fire consumes oxygen from the air leaving the remaining mix of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. This is a deadly combination. It is difficult to revive a patient with oxygen therapy alone because carbon monoxide is toxic and bonds more closely than oxygen to the hemoglobin in the blood. Prolonged exposure to oxygen-depleted air causes confusion, drowsiness, and death. Extended exposure to oxygen-depleted air causes drowsiness, confusion, and death.
• Inhaled hot gases: Products of combustion such as carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide can scar nasal passages and lung tissue when inhaled. This leads to permanent and disabling lung problems.
• Smoke: Smoke is a mixture of heated particles and gases that can damage the respiratory system permanently congested or obstruct breathing, and cause seizures and coma. Fire burns oxygen, therefore as a fire continues, the amount of oxygen in the room decreases. Fifteen minutes of smoke with zero oxygen would kill you and five to ten minutes would cause permanent brain damage in humans. Those who are able to escape a burning fire will notice wheezing and breathing problems for many hours following.

Long-Term Medical Problems

In many cases, burn victims can develop an onslaught of complications, to include infection and possible death. Victims are also at high risk of developing cerebral hypoxia, a condition caused by a large-scale death of brain cells due to lack of oxygen, as fire consumes oxygen quickly.

Recovery from a burn injury is painful and slow. Victims may spend the rest of their lives with physical and emotional scars. Burn victims require a number of surgeries to try and correct the various problems that a burn can create. Physical therapy and rehabilitation are almost always necessary following a severe burn.

How A Maritime Burn Injury Attorney From The Carlson Law Firm Can Help

The team of offshore injury attorneys at The Carlson Law Firm is ready to intervene on your behalf. A maritime burn injury attorney will advocate on your behalf to recover maximum damages for the pain you are suffering from.

If you or someone you love suffered injury or death as a result of their work offshore, you may be entitled to the compensation you so rightly deserve. Contact the Carlson Law Firm today for a free, no obligation, consultation with a maritime burn injury attorney. If you are looking for prompt, personal and proven representation for your offshore injury, Jones Act claim or any other Maritime Law claim, The Carlson Law Firm is here to help. Our team of attorneys, specialists, and research associated has the experience and resources to guide you through your legal journey and help you secure the best results possible.

Contact us today for a free case evaluation with a maritime burn injury attorney.