New York Injury Talk Blog

Halloween brings droves of costumed trick or treaters, not to mention other celebrators and mischievous revelers, to the streets each year. Unfortunately, along with all the candy and scary outfits, accidents and injuries are common as well. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the bulk of hazardous Halloween incidents can be prevented. Below are a few of the main topics from the agency’s recent safety release checklist issued to individuals and families regarding the holiday.

• Don’t play with fire: Don’t use candles or anything with an open flame (including traditional jack o’ lanterns)as Halloween is one of the top sources for fires every year. Get battery operated light sources instead, which are available at almost any retail location with Halloween materials. Also, only choose costumes (and any other related accessories) that are made of flame resistant materials.
• Stay well lit: When walking, always carry flashlights or other battery lit devices in dim or dusk lighting. Also, customize wardrobes and accessories with tape that reflects light and/or glow in the dark material. This will ensure you’re visible to cars, bicyclists, and other pedestrians.
• Get costumes fitted: Don’t use costumes that drape or hang along the ground; these can cause tripping accidents and can also catch fire if exposed accidentally to an open flame. Customize the outfits for safety whenever it’s questionable. Also, any costume parts that are worn on the head should not obstruct vision or breathing abilities.

Most accidents stem from a lack of safety awareness, or adherence, in combination with the high pedestrian and vehicle traffic. If you or a family member has been injured in an accident that you think was the result of recklessness or neglect, contact the New York City personal injury attorneys with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro at (212) 986-7353 for a complimentary consultation.

Law enforcement officials across the country are handing out an increasing amount of citations for texting while driving.

Nine states made the specific form of distracted driving a primary offense in 2010, while four others followed suit during this year. In total, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) cites that 31 of 34 states with laws prohibiting texting and driving have made the violation a primary offense. In states where texting is a primary offense, police and highway officers are permitted to pull over drivers for that specific violation alone (a secondary offense requires that officers possess a more pressing reason for pulling an individual over).

Since New York stepped up its punishment for texting behind the wheel in 2009, according to reporting by USA Today, the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (NY DMV) calculated it has given out 4,634 citations this year through the middle of September, surpassing the 3,248 violations in 2010 in its entirety. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released data this summer that showed there was less texting while driving in Syracuse, New York due to heightened awareness and enforcement during the previous year.

One spokesperson for the NY DMV noted that before primary seat belt laws became effective, not many individuals buckled up; while now, after the law has had time to enact change, seat belt compliance is more than 90 percent. Hopefully one day soon we will see the same kind of change from the primary texting laws. Have you or a loved one been injured in a car accident resulting from a distracted driver’s negligence? If so, contact the Manhattan auto accident lawyers with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro. Call (212)986-7353 for a complimentary case consultation today.

In the latest New York bus accident, a Trailways bus carrying passengers from Kingston to Manhattan collided with a tractor trailer truck going south on the New York State Thruway. Seven of the sixteen bus passengers, along with the bus driver, were injured and treated at Suffern’s Good Samaritan Medical Center.

According to reporting by Lohud.com, the driver of the tractor trailer told police that he reduced his speed to allow a vehicle to merge onto the highway from a south bound rest area. After the truck slowed, the bus allegedly crashed into the trailer’s right side. The bus driver, who suffered injuries to his leg and pelvis, was trapped when the front portion of the bus crumpled upon impact and had to be manually freed by emergency rescue personnel. Upon initial investigation, the officials claimed the bus showed no overlooked mechanical problems or safety violations related to the accident. However, federal officials and New York State Police said they will continue to investigate the cause of the wreck, starting with a more thorough examination of the vehicle at the company’s bus lot in Kingston.

The crash raises another serious safety flag in an unprecedented rash of commercial bus accidents in the New York area during the previous eight months. In spite of further government regulation and the suspension of operating licenses for eight bus companies, the crashes continue. If you or a loved one has been injured in a New York bus accident, contact the New York bus accident attorneys with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro at (212)986-7353 for a free case review.

For Fire Prevention Week, observed from October 9 to October 15, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) urged families to put together and practice plans for prevention and emergency evacuations.

According to CPSC numbers, more than 386,000 unintended fires have occurred in residences each year from 2006 to 2008. Each of those years, personal injury for those accidents was tallied at more than 12,500 counts, while fatalities were around 2,400.

Fire Prevention Week emphasizes the importance of preparedness in preventing injury, fatality, and other damages. The agencies offered the following rules for families to follow, as well as several more on a release by the CPSC:

• Be safe in the kitchen: Cooking accidents are the leading cause of home fires, and kitchen devices were involved in the biggest number of blazes accounted for by fire departments in 2006 to 2008. During that period, the CPSC calculates a yearly medium of around 150,000 kitchen fires which is almost 40-percent of all accidental home fires, causing approximately 150 fatalities each year.
• Be careful with fireplaces: Get them fully inspected by a professional each year to ensure they are safe to use. Always keep ashes in a covered, flame resistant receptacle away from anything that’s flammable. Discard ashes very cautiously and keep them far from leaves, garbage, or other items that may catch fire.

Other key rules included installing and properly using smoke alarms and developing a well planned and rehearsed evacuation plan. If you or a family member has been injured in a fire resulting from another party’s neglect, contact the fire accident injury attorneys in New York City with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro. Call (212) 986-7353 to receive a free case review from an attorney today.

New York City is notorious for its precarious, and often dangerous, balance between motor vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians. An innovative site called CrashStat uses information gathered by the New York State Department of Transportation (NY DOT) to raise awareness of traffic accidents in the Big Apple. The site focuses on bicycle and pedestrian accidents affected by crashes involving motor vehicles, and the data was gathered during the years 1995 to 2009.

The intuitive map based interface allows a user to interactively search neighborhoods, precincts, and addresses, as well as several other customizable selectors, for statistics on accidents. You can search regarding accident information, the kind of vehicles involved, and other items. As reported by the Village Voice, and according to the data on the site, the city’s most treacherous point is Park Avenue at 33rd Street. At that spot, over 163 pedestrians suffered injuries during the searchable period. Another cross street prone to accidents was E. Houston at the Bowery, noted the Voice; forty-one bicyclists were involved in accidents there.

A group called Transportation Alternatives is behind the site with the statement: “We believe that the City of New York should develop a comprehensive plan to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries.” The group also went on to note that 220,000 injuries have been sustained by pedestrians and bicyclists, and more than 2,000 lives have been lost in the city during the period tracked by CrashStat. Have you or a loved one been injured as a pedestrian or bicyclist in New York? Do you believe the accident was a result of a motor vehicle driver’s negligence? Contact the New York pedestrian accident attorneys with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro at (212) 986-7353 for a complimentary case consultation.

As reported over the past few months, due to a string of tragic commercial bus crashes that have plagued the Northeast due to bus safety violations, the federal has revoked the operating licenses of eight companies deemed responsible. However, the discipline may be moot as many of those suspended bus fleets are still out on the roads and operating under newly-diverted management companies, according to The New York Times.

Such is the case for a company named World Wide Travel. When its business was suspended back in August, the owner merely shuffled the fleets to operate under separate companies that he runs out of the same Brooklyn office. State transportation officials said a company named Great Escapes, owned by that same individual, now operates most of the former World Wide Travel buses, as reported by The NY Times. World Wide Travel was closed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in June due to severe safety infringements, including company violations of hours of service rules and a driver charged with manslaughter.

The problem of suspended bus fleets that re-emerge on the road with new company names was investigated back in 2009 by the Government Accountability Office. Back then, a Texas accident resulting in 17 fatalities was linked to a shuffled version of a bus business that had been supposedly shut down two months prior. A resulting study showed that upwards of 9 percent of bus fleets with operating licenses revoked for safety reasons had re-emerged under different identities.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a bus accident in New York that you believe was the result of operational negligence, contact the New York bus accident attorneys with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro at 212-986-7353 for a free consultation today.

A Bell 206 helicopter carrying four passengers visiting from England crashed in New York’s East River near a helipad off 34th Street at approximately 3:30 p.m. ET on October 4. According to an msnbc.com article, one passenger has died and two others have been transported to a hospital in critical condition. Rescue teams consisted mostly of the NYPD and at least seven boats. While the pilot and three passengers were rescued from the water not too long after the helicopter crashed, the body of the fourth tourist wasn’t recovered until an hour later.

A witness to the helicopter accident in New York said she saw the chopper do “a funny curlicue”, thinking that it was a “daredevil move”, eventually realizing that it was in fact out of control. The witness also said that the helicopter went about 25 feet into the air before it dropped into the water and flipped over with its blades protruding out of the river. Individuals on the nearby dock threw life jackets and buoys into the water with hopes of helping the helicopter’s occupants.

Bell 206 Jet Rangers are known as one of the world’s most popular helicopter models because of being light and easy to maneuver. Many television stations and air taxi companies use these models. While it is unclear at this time as to what exactly led to the helicopter accident, investigators will likely examine pilot error as well as the condition of the helicopter in regards to maintenance and defective parts.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) updated regulations for aircrafts flying over New York City rivers after the plane helicopter accident in 2009 that killed nine people. Pilots are now required to call out their positions on the radio in addition to adhering to a 161 mph speed limit.

At Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro, LLP, our skilled New York helicopter crash attorneys have years of experience successfully handling serious injury and wrongful death cases. To find out more about how we can help you obtain compensation from negligent parties, call 212-986-7353 today for a free consultation.