New York Injury Talk Blog

A 22-year-old dancer has sued New York-based Cargill Inc. after she came down with food poisoning from eating an E. coli-tainted hamburger in 2007, which left her paralyzed. According to a news report, the woman's medical bills have already totaled to $2 million and she is likely to undergo more expenses for constant care and medical attention for the rest of her life. She apparently went through nine months of hospitalization, rehabilitation and other treatment. The E.coli infection left her with brain damage, kidney damage, and has made her unable to walk and unable to pursue her passion – dance.

The woman apparently ate a hamburger sold at Sam's Club at a family barbecue in 2007. The hamburger she ate was processed by Cargill. It was contaminated with a deadly strain of E. coli. The New York Times recently reported that the tainted meat came to Cargill from one of its suppliers.

Continue reading "E. Coli Food Poisoning Leaves Dancer Paralyzed" »

A woman was killed in a New York City car accident involving former network news anchor Tom Brokaw, WPIX reported. The fatal auto accident occurred on the eastbound side of the Bruckner Expressway near the Sheridan Expressway. The Brokaws noticed a spool of cable in the far right lane when an SUV in the right lane speeded up in an effort to avoid the cable on the roadway.

The victim's SUV then crashed into a mail truck and overturned. She was ejected from the SUV and went over the highway falling onto train tracks. According to news reports, Brokaw said the mail truck swerved into their lane and he was forced to slam on the brakes causing their vehicle to crash into the mail truck. Brokaw and his wife were not injured in the accident. The female driver of the SUV died at the scene. The driver of the mail truck sustained minor injuries.

Continue reading "Car Accident Involving Tom Brokaw Caused by Debris on New York Expressway" »

A new law that has taken effect this month will make it a felony to drive with a blood alcohol level greater than 0.08 percent with a passenger who is under the age of 16. According to a news report, this new law, known as Leandra's Law states that a first offense will carry a potential prison sentence of up to four years; up to 15 years if a child passenger is seriously injured; and up to 25 years if the child is killed. The legislation, adopted last month, was named after Leandra Rosada, an 11-year-old girl who was killed in a Manhattan DUI car accident.

Drivers charged under this law will also be required to surrender their driving privileges pending prosecution. If convicted, drivers must install an ignition interlock system in the car for at least six months. According to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles, in 2008 alone, there were 9,202 alcohol-related car accidents in New York. In those crashed 488 children under the age of 18 were injured or killed.

Continue reading "New Law to Curb Drunk Driving in New York" »

A new study by Consumer Reports shows that Toyota Motor Corp. registered way more complaints regarding sudden acceleration in its 2008 model year vehicles than any other auto maker. According to a news report in the Los Angeles Times, Toyota and Lexus got 41 percent of all consumer complaints that were logged by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that had to do with runaway acceleration. Toyota topped Chrysler, Honda, General Motors and Nissan combined with regard to this auto product defect issue. Ford came in second with 28 percent of complaints relating to sudden or inadvertent acceleration.

Toyota issued its largest ever vehicle defect recall last month of 4.2 million vehicles after a fatal car accident in San Diego that killed four people. Initially, defective floor mats were thought to have caused the accelerator to jam in the Lexus involved in that particular accident. But a federal investigation determined that the problem also had to do with the way the accelerator pedals were designed in these vehicles. So far, 19 people have died in sudden acceleration accidents involving Toyotas since 2002 model year, Los Angeles Times review of records shows.

Continue reading "2008 Toyota and Lexus Models Receive Most Complaints for Sudden Acceleration" »

A 47-year-old warehouse worker was crushed to death when a load of granite tiles fell on him. According to a news report in the New York Daily News, the tiles were stacked on top of each other when they toppled on the worker's head. The man died despite his co-workers' failed attempt to rescue him from under the heavy granite tiles. This fatal on-the-job accident is being investigated both by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as well as the New York Police Department. OSHA investigators will be specifically looking into whether any safety standard violations took place that may have caused accident.

In New York, injured workers and their families are entitled to receive workers compensation benefits in the event of an on-the-job accident. However, we often see that these benefits are hardly enough to compensate a seriously injured worker or a family that has lost its primary wage earner. New York State laws prevent a worker from suing his or her employer. But if the work-related injury was caused by a third party, employees can file a claim against that negligent individual or entity.

Continue reading "Warehouse Worker Crushed to Death by Falling Granite Slabs" »

Federal officials are issuing a product defect recall for close to 50 million Roman-style shades and roll-up blinds. The recall comes after reports of several deaths and serious personal injuries involving young children who were either strangled or nearly strangled by exposed cords on these blinds. According to a CNN news report, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has documented that five children have died and 16 others have been nearly strangulated since 2006 as a result of the recalled Roman shades and roll-up blinds.

Officials say that with the Roman shades, the problem arises because of space between the inner cord and shade fabric. With the roll-up blinds, a large loop at the end of the cord poses a significant strangulation hazard especially for young children. CPSC estimates that about 5 million Roman shades and 2 million roll-up blinds are sold each year. This recall includes blinds and shades sold by the nation's largest retailers including Target, Wal-Mart, IKEA, JC Penney, Big Lots, Ross, Ace Hardware and Pottery Barn.

Those who have these defective products at home are asked to contact the retailers for a free repair kit. Millions of these window coverings have been recalled over the last decade. CPSC is also considering setting mandatory federal standards with regard to these products that will make them safer for children.

Continue reading "Massive Defective Product Recall Involves 50 Million Window Coverings" »