A worker in a Riverside factory sustained a serious job injury the morning of April 8, 2010, after his hand slipped on some equipment and two of his fingers were severed. According to a news report in The Press-Enterprise, the industrial accident occurred at Four Slide Engineering in the 4600 block of Wade Avenue in Perris, California. Riverside County fire officials said that the business where this on-the-job accident occurred was a metal roofing manufacturing company. The injured worker, a machinist, was transported to a local hospital for treatment of serious injuries. Officials from the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) are investigating this incident.

I sympathize with this injured worker for the pain and suffering he must be going through as a result of these serious injuries. I sincerely hope his two severed fingers can be reattached and that he has not suffered any catastrophic injuries. I wish this injured worker the very best for a speedy and complete recovery. He and his family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Industrial Accident Statistics

According to Cal-OSHA’s 2005 statistics, a total of 453 people were killed in industrial accident in California. Out of these fatalities, 38 involved workers who were injured as a result of some type of equipment malfunction.

What Caused This Workplace Accident?

In this particular case, it is not clear exactly what caused the finger amputations. Based on a preliminary report, it appears that the machinist's hand slipped and was trapped by the machine he was working on. However, there are several questions here. Was this worker trained for the job he was doing? Was he following safety procedures as required by law? Was he aware of these safety procedures? Was there some type of malfunction in the machinery or equipment that he was handling? I trust Cal/OSHA investigators will be looking closely into these and other issues in order to determine if there were any safety violations and exactly what caused his personal injuries.

Third Party Claims

The injured worker in this case would be entitled to California workers compensation benefits through his employer. However, these benefits are hardly sufficient to cover medical expenses and lost earnings in cases where the worker has suffered injuries that leave him or her disabled for life or in a situation where he or she cannot return to work for a lengthy period of time.

Victims, in these types of injury accidents, might want to consider filing a third-party claim. Such claims are usually filed against a party, other than an employer, whose negligence may have caused or contributed to the worker's serious injury. In this case, an example of a third party may be a company that was contracted to maintain equipment and machinery. Other examples of third parties include contractors, sub-contractors or the manufacturers of defective products that caused the injury. An experienced Riverside personal injury lawyer will be able to give victims and their families more information about third party claims, as well as about their legal rights in such situations.

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The BISNAR|CHASE personal injury law firm is not representing any of the parties mentioned in this article at the time the article was posted. Our information source is cited in the article. If you were involved in this incident or a similar incident and have questions as to your rights and options, call us or another reputable law firm. Do not act solely upon the information provided herein. Get a consultation. The best law firms will provide a free consultation. We provide a free, confidential consultation to not at fault persons named in this article. The free consultation offer extends to family members as well.

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