Personal Injury

December 10, 2012

MBTA Fires “Inattentive” Driver Involved in Boston Train Crash

The MBTA has fired the driver of a Green Line train that recently collided with another train, sending numerous riders to the hospital.

The reason for the termination is that the driver was “inattentive” at the time of the crash, said MBTA General Manager Jonathan R. Davis.

Davis said the driver was “solely responsible” for the accident. The driver had worked another, non-MBTA job from midnight to 8:00 a.m. before starting his MBTA job at 11:00 a.m., approximately an hour before the crash. The MBTA has not released the name of the driver or a description of the second job.

MBTA rules do not specifically prohibit employees from working additional jobs, but by not having sufficient rest before reporting to work, the driver was unfit for duty, violating MBTA policy, said Davis.

“Because of his alarming disregard for customer and employee safety in performing his duty as a Green Line operator, today he was fired,” Davis said at a news conference prior to a regularly scheduled meeting of the state transportation board. “The conclusion is he was inattentive to his duties as a Green Line operator, resulting in a collision with the other vehicle.”

The driver reported to investigators that he did not fall asleep while operating the train, said Davis. Investigators were unable to determine if that was in fact the case, said Davis.

The collision between two Green Line trains at the Boylston Street station occurred just before noon on Thursday, injuring tens of people. The train was entering the station when it rear-ended another train that had stopped on the platform.

37 people were taken to area hospitals with minor injuries. “People went flying, got their knees banged up. It was pretty hectic,” said one rider.

None of the trolleys were damaged in the crash and the station opened in time for the evening commute.
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December 3, 2012

No Cell Phone Use or Mechanical Failure in Boston Green Line MBTA Crash

by Altman & Altman

Last week, our Boston Personal Injury Lawyers blogged about the MBTA crash involving two Trolleys in Boston, MA. Investigators now report they have found no evidence that cell phone use or mechanical failure caused the crash between two Green Line trains on Thursday that injured 37 people, said the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

The collision occurred when “One trolley bumped into the rear of another trolley that was making a regular stop at the station,” said MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo. According to one rider, “people went flying, got their knees banged up. It was pretty hectic.”

“The train was going, and all of a sudden we heard a loud crash,” and “All of us just piled on top of each other,” one witness said.

EMTs set up a triage center outside the station to treat injured riders. 37 passengers were taken to area hospitals. The operator of the second trolley was also injured, Pesaturo said.
Chief of Boston EMS James Hooley said several people “complained of neck and back pain that required them to be carried up and extracted, but the majority of them – 28 or so – were walking, wounded.”

About 200 people were on the Green Line trains at the time of the crash.
MBTA officials downplayed the severity of the incident, saying it was a “slow-speed crash” that damaged no trolleys. There were no serious injuries, Hooley said.
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November 29, 2012

FDA Shuts Down Nut-Processing Plant After Many are Sickened with Salmonella

by Altman & Altman

The Food and Drug Association shut down a nut-processing facility in Portales, New Mexico, after it was tied to a nation-wide salmonella outbreak in June of this year. The plant, operated by Sunland Inc., was set to open this week, however the FDA stepped in and put the reopening process to a halt.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the plant produced salmonella contaminated nut butter, which sickened at least 41 people in 20 states, most of whom were children. The nut butter was sold in restaurants and retailers such as Trader Joe’s, Starbucks, Whole Foods and Target stores nationwide, including several in Massachusetts, and was pulled off the shelves following the recall.

The recalled Sunland Inc. products were not only jars of peanut butter, but also other nut products the company produces. A complete list of products is available on the FDA’s website.
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November 28, 2012

Springfield, MA Natural Gas Explosion Caused by Human Error

by Altman & Altman

Our Boston Personal Injury Attorneys previously blogged about a natural gas explosion at Scores Gentlemen’s Club that injured 18 people and damaged 42 buildings in Springfield’s entertainment district.

Now, authorities appear to have identified the cause. State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan said the blast was due to a “human error” that occurred when an unnamed utility worker accidentally punctured a high-pressure pipeline while looking for a leak.

The worker pierced the gas line while using a metal probe to search for a leak, said Coan. Gas then filled the strip club, with a spark of some kind igniting the blast. “Unfortunately when he put the probe in the ground he punctured and penetrated the gas main itself. That allowed a high volume off free flowing gas to enter the building,” Coan said.

The worker was following older markings on a sidewalk that located the position of the gas line, but the markings were incorrect, Coan said. “Some old markings that were in the street from some previous work that had been done were not exactly where they should have been and were off a couple of feet. So while the employee thought he was a safe distance from the gas line, in fact he was directly on top of it,” Coan said.

The explosion damaged 115 residential units located in 42 buildings. Officials condemned three of those buildings immediately, and indicated that 24 others need structural inspections by engineers to assess their safety. The blast completely destroyed the gentlemen’s club. Most of the people hurt in the blast were gas workers, firefighters, and police.

Authorities had evacuated several buildings in the area after the pipe was damaged. Springfield Fire Commissioner Joseph Conant commended the department’s firefighters, saying they “did an excellent job evacuating the area which certainly prevented additional civilian injuries and saved many lives.”
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November 23, 2012

At Least 18 Injured in Springfield, Massachusetts Natural Gas Blast at Strip Club

by Altman & Altman

At least 18 people were hurt during a natural gas blast in Springfield, Massachusetts’s entertainment district at around 6 pm tonight. The explosion at the Scores Gentlemen’s Club, leveled the local strip club, and also damaged a five-story building and a nearby day care. A tattoo parlor a block and a half away also experienced property damage from the incident.

The blast happened after gas workers had wrapped up their investigation of the smell of gas in the area. They had evacuated the street and were just about to let people return when the explosion occurred.

Spokespeople at Mercy Medical Center and Baystate Medical Center say that none of the injuries appear to be life-threatening. Among those hurt were 10 firefighters and cops and three gas workers. One dancer from the strip club reportedly told The Republican that the smell of gas had been present for a while. She says the gas company even checked it out earlier this week.

November 19, 2012

North Andover Wrongful Death Lawsuit Involving Worcester Man Subdued by Police in Traffic Stop is Settled for $1.6M

by Altman & Altman

Three years after Kenneth Howe, 45, died after being subdued by several officers during a North Andover traffic stop, the Worcester man’s family has settled their Massachusetts wrongful death lawsuit against three law enforcement agencies for $1.6M. The agencies are the North Andover police, state police, and the Essex County sheriff.

Howe was detained during a traffic stop at a state police checkpoint in November 25, 2009. According to the family’s North Andover wrongful death lawyer, Howe was “swarmed” by numerous troopers and police officers after he allegedly got involved in a tussle with a trooper at the scene. The law enforcement officers struck him with a baton and shackled him and didn’t call for medical help even though Howe said that he couldn’t breathe. It wasn’t until he was on the ground at the Andover state police barracks and unresponsive that medical assistance was sought. Howe was pronounced dead upon arriving at the hospital.

While prosecutors had cleared the officers of wrongdoing, Howe’s wife and three children believe that he was the victim of excessive use of police force. They named 33 troopers and officers in their complaint. According to Eagle-Tribune, photos taken by one of its photographers show Howe face down on the ground with some of the cops on top of him.

November 17, 2012

Family of Teen Who Fell from US Airways Jet in a Boston Suburb Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against US Airways

by Altman & Altman

Two years after Delvonte Tisdale fell out of a flying Boeing 737 and landed in a Boston suburb, his family is suing US Airways, Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, and the city of Charlotte, NC for his wrongful death. The tragic accident involving the 16-year-old in November 2010 made national headlines after Tisdale stowed onto the plane.

The teen had run away from home and was able to get onto the airport tarmac and then later into the wheel well of the jet, which was destined for Boston, undetected. Following Tisdale’s death, a security review determined that the airport’s police force was not adequate enough to provide proper monitoring of the property. Since then, certain security recommendations have been implemented there.

The wheel well of a plane is not pressurized and there is usually not enough oxygen there. Temperatures can become very cold, even going down to way under 0 degrees. A shattered plastic card was found on Tisdale’s body. The condition of the card likely was a result of freezing temperatures in the wheel well during the flight.

November 13, 2012

Parking Risks and How to Avoid Them

by Altman & Altman

Parking is a part of most people’s everyday work routine into which they probably don’t put much thought. While it may seem like a mundane part of one’s daily routine, the reality is that most people use parking lots several times a day without acknowledging the inherent safety risks until it is perhaps too late. Though parking lots are a breeding ground for all sorts of accidents, it is important for employers and employees to know their dangers in order to help prevent accidents from occurring.

The two most common and preventable accidents that occur in parking lots are security accidents and slip, trip or fall hazards.

The National Crime Victimization Survey, conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, reports that more than 1 in 10 property crimes occur in parking lots or garages. Other violent crimes occur in parking lots due to the nature of these spaces. Dark or unlit areas provide the perfect environment for crimes to occur, especially given that many people walk to their cars alone. Parked cars also provide hiding spots for predators who can crouch behind them and remain unseen for long periods of time.
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November 3, 2012

Fireworks company responsible for leaving behind Fourth of July shells receives statewide ban

by Altman & Altman

The firework company Pyrotecnico has been suspended from operating in Massachusetts by State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan until July 4, 2013. The suspension occurred following the events of last July 4th, in which Pyrotecnico left unexploded firework shells in parks and playgrounds in the towns of Ayer, Hingham, Marion, Milford, Newton, Westford, Wilmington, Winchester, and Sharon.

The unexploded shells could potentially have been harmful to any passersby, many of whom were children. As this blog reported back in July, the shells were initially discovered after the company’s July 3 show in Stoughton, when a maintenance worker mowing a field accidentally set off one of the shells. Luckily, due to the swift actions of police officers who searched sites statewide and removed any shells that were discovered, no one was seriously injured. Coan explained that a child playing or even a town worker maintaining the premises could accidentally stumble upon the shell and become injured if it were to detonate. Coan called this “unacceptable.”
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October 30, 2012

Recent Assaults on MBTA in Boston Promt Investigation

by Altman & Altman

A bus owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) was traveling on Albany Street near the Boston Medical Center early this morning when a male passenger demanded to be let off. The bus driver refused, as it was not an authorized bus stop, which agitated the passenger. The passenger then punched the driver in the side of the head and jumped out of the emergency window exit. The driver was treated for his injuries by Boston EMS and police continue to search for the passenger.

Unfortunately, this is not the first assault against an MBTA employee this month. A MBTA operator was spat on at the beginning of the month at the intersection of Washington Street and Harvard Street in Charlestown. MBTA employees are not surprised by these assaults as there has statistically been a rise of assaults annually. Transit police gave a picture of the suspect to the press in hopes of finding and prosecuting him.

Another incident occurred on Dudley Street and Hamden Street, when passenger Carlos A. Ramirez-Rodrigue entered the bus and started to verbally fight with the driver. After yelling a number of obscenities, the MBTA operator asked Ramirez-Rodrigue to leave the bus. Ramirez-Rodrigue responded by repeatedly spitting in the direction of the driver as he left the bus, and when the door to the bus closed, he began to punch the door causing the door window to shatter. He was subsequently arrested for damaging MBTA property as well as two counts of assault and battery. Sadly, there have been many incidents like this one involving the endangerment of MBTA employees this year, including a death that occurred last August.
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