Crush injuries may arise on the railroad in many ways, but arguably most commonly through coupling procedures. This is because a malfunctioning coupler may cause a train car to move unexpectedly, potentially pinning a worker between it and another one. Even if a coupler is not malfunctioning or defective, such a caught-between accident can still occur if a worker is not properly trained on the safety protocols of the coupling or uncoupling procedures. If you find yourself the unfortunate victim of this, please follow along to find out whether you can recover from your crush injury and how one of the proficient railroad crush injury lawyers at Hildebrand McLeod & Nelson LLP can help you through this healing process.
Can I physically recover from a crush injury on the railroad?
Some railroad workers can make a full physical recovery after their crushing accident. However, the extent of your personal recovery may be directly dependent on the extent of your injury. Similarly, the speed of your recovery may be based on how quickly you seek professional attention for it. So, the one thing you may control here is seeking medical treatment immediately following your accident. This means taking an ambulance ride directly from your workplace to the emergency room.
As far as the severity of a crush injury, this may range from minor bruising to, unfortunately, the loss of a limb(s). Say your injury is on the more serious side of this scale. If so, you may be looking ahead at months or even years of surgical procedures, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and more. This is not to mention the possibility of long-term complications such as chronic pain and limited mobility. Sadly, this is especially true if this injury has left you permanently disabled, meaning that you may have to rework how you carry out your everyday life. This may subsequently lead to your anxiety and depression, diminished quality of life, loss of enjoyment of life, and other forms of emotional damage.
Can I financially recover after incurring a crush injury?
Again, if your crush injury is severe enough to demand intensive medical intervention, this inevitably means you will have hefty medical bills rapidly piling up. It may be all the more difficult to pay off this medical debt if your injury prevents you from returning to your job or line of work for the long term or even indefinitely. This is not to mention the factor of being temporarily or permanently physically handicapped, which may require you to purchase assistive devices and make necessary renovations to your home.
Under these circumstances, the best and arguably the only way to fully financially recover from this is by filing a Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) against your railroad company employer. Importantly, this may only be viable if you strongly believe that your employer created a harmful work environment, which prompted your crushing accident and subsequent injuries to occur. Nonetheless, if you are ready to make matters right, please retain the services of one of the talented FELA lawyers as soon as you can. We at Hildebrand McLeod & Nelson LLP look forward to receiving your outreach.
