El Paso Oil Field Accident Attorney

Most anyone who goes to work in an oil field understands that doing so carries with it some inherent risks; however, they also believe that their employers have taken every possible step to protect them from harm.

As for residents, they’re often less aware of those dangers, though, as they may not be aware operations like these often occur in their area until danger sets in. Each El Paso oilfield accident lawyer on our team has come to learn how significantly workers and residents have been misguided when they meet to discuss those injury incidents.

If you’ve been hurt while working on or leaving nearby an oil field in El Paso or a family member has, let’s talk. Meeting with our attorneys to explore your right to file a lawsuit to recover compensation for the losses you incurred is completely free.

Injury Dangers That Exist in and Around Oil Fields

There are a wide range of injuries that workers and even residents from nearby areas can face due to the nature of this industry. Some of the most common types of illnesses and impairments we see among our clients are caused by incidents such as:

• Motor vehicle accidents: Fracking and other types of natural gas and oil extraction activities at the Marathon El Paso Refinery and others bring an influx of vehicles in and out of communities, putting not only workers but also area residents at risk of becoming involved in a car or truck accident. The latter is especially common since those leasing the well are routinely bringing heavy equipment into the area to enhance their operations. Wrecks between cars and trucks often cause serious impairments like traumatic brain injuries or damage to victims’ spinal cords and also deaths.
• Slip and fall injuries: Workers often walk along platforms that are set up high above the oil fields. They can easily become cluttered with tools and extraction materials, slippery, and unsteady from wear and tear. This can cause those working here to suffer slips and falls at either the same height or to lower levels, such as the ground.
• Burns and smoke inhalation: These often go hand-in-hand with one another. They often stem from a well blowout and ensuing explosion and fire. The danger associated with this happening is that it leads to the release of crude oil or natural gas into the air, which our bodies aren’t supposed to breathe in, so respiratory issues and even toxic exposure leading to death can result. Fires can cause an oilfield worker or anyone else nearby to suffer electrical, chemical, or open flame types of burns.
• Suffocation and other related injuries: It’s not uncommon for workers in the oil and gas industry to suffer toxic exposure or asphyxiation injuries. Either may occur due to these individuals working in tight spaces, especially where noxious fumes abound. The accumulation of a high degree of toxins in a worker’s or anyone else’s body may lead to diminished brain function, unconsciousness, and that individual ultimately dying depending on how long they’re exposed.
• Struck by incidents: From cranes to tanker trucks and many other large trucks or pieces of heavy equipment in between, these are just some examples of objects that can strike workers, vendors, and others on the site, leading to life-changing compression, traumatic brain, or spinal cord injuries if not death.

All these accidents share one commonality, which is that they all are generally preventable if motorists exercise a duty of care when traveling in vehicles or operating heavy machinery or employers keep a watch out for red flags and properly equip their staff with protective equipment.

Unfortunately, our attorneys often find that these relatively simple preventative measures weren’t implemented, leading to unnecessary harm.

Securing Damages for Your Accident-Related Losses in Texas

When serious injuries or death result, costs can be significant.

Even if you are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits or health insurance covers some of your expenses, it’s unlikely that they will pay for all your immediate and future expenses.

Whether an El Paso oilfield accident lawyer advises you that you’re allowed to recover compensation and, if so, how much will depend on whether you suffered injuries (and what types) or if the incident caused your loved one to lose their life as follows:

Compensation Victims Injured on Oil Fields in El Paso May Be Able To Recover

Damages an oilfield injury victim may have might be both monetary and non-monetary, depending on their nature and severity.

Some of the non-economic damages that may be recoverable after an injury incident like this include:

• Ambulance or life flight (helicopter) costs
• Bills for emergency room visits
• Diagnostic testing like blood work, X-ray, CT-scan, or MRI imaging, and pathology
• A hospital stay, such as in the intensive care unit (ICU)
• Physical therapy or residence in a rehabilitation facility
• Follow-up doctors’ visits
• Lost wages and future earnings
• Retrofitting one’s home to accommodate your new needs (i.e., installing a ramp, making it handicap accessible)
• Medications and assistive devices (i.e., wheelchairs)
• At-home nursing aides
• Vocational rehab training

Non-economic damages you may be able to demand compensation for from liable parties include some of the following:

• Scarring and disfigurement
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Pain and suffering

Monetary Settlements Available to Surviving Family Members of Wrongful Death Victims

If the oilfield accident took a close loved one’s life, the compensation you may be able to recover by filing a wrongful death lawsuit includes:

• Life-saving medical bills the decedent may have incurred preceding their death
• Funeral, burial, and cremation costs

Non-economic damages surviving family members may also be entitled to include those associated with the loss of:

• Companionship or consortium of the deceased
• The victim’s future financial contribution to the household
• Benefits a defendant might have been entitled to had it not been for the passing
• Inheritance caused by the victim’s premature death

It may also be possible for surviving family members to claim mental anguish or pain and suffering if they can show that the decedent’s passing caused them to experience these emotions.

What To Do After Suffering a Disabling Injury or if a Loved One Died

There are a few critical steps that you’ll want to be sure you take if you or a close family member was hurt or killed on an El Paso oilfield, including:

• Filing an official record of what happened with your employer or police (or both)
• Seeking medical treatment or making final arrangements for your deceased loved one
• Continuing to receive treatment until you are released by your doctor
• Being careful to only stick to the facts if you do discuss the incident with anyone after it occurs
• Reaching out to an attorney as early on in your case as possible

Why do we provide that latter piece of advice?

Well, although the oil and gas industry is big business, it doesn’t mean that those working in it want to part ways with the revenue they’ve generated.  You can bet that all the big players in the fracking industry are backed by legal teams to protect their interests.

You need to have the same in your corner. That’s where Barrera Law Group LLC can help.

Each El Paso oilfield accident lawyer here has experience going head-to-head with attorneys representing parties in the oil and gas extraction business. We’re not intimidated by them in our pursuit of settlements for our clients.

So, if you want that type of zealous advocacy standing up for your rights in your demands for compensation, let’s talk.

Our work together can begin immediately after our initial consultation.