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Yearly Archives: 2011

Autumn Alabama Work Injuries Commonly Caused by Heat Stroke, Silo Entrapment, Farming Accidents

Aug 26, 2011 - Workers' Compensation/Work Injury by

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration is conducting an all-out blitz on the dangers of heat-related work injuries in Alabama and elsewhere. Heading into fall harvest season, the government’s top work-safety watchdog is also sounding the alarm about the risks of silo entrapment, and other farming accidents. Our Birmingham workers’ compensation lawyers encourage employees to be mindful of the risks — and employers to do their part in preventing work injuries in Birmingham, Tuscaloosa and elsewhere in Alabama. OSHA is pushing a web-based app aimed at helping employers keep workers safe in the sun. “Summer heat presents a serious issue that affects some of the most vulnerable workers in our country, and education is crucial to keeping them safe,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Heat-related illnesses are preventable. This new app is just one way the Labor Department is getting that message out.” The app uses the heat index as published by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to determine necessary protective measures. Download here.

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Back-to-School Brings Risk of Child Injuries in Tuscaloosa

Aug 22, 2011 - Bus Accidents by

School is in session! Tuscaloosa County Schools started Aug. 10. Other areas schools are also getting under way for the 2011-2012 school year. Please take some time to talk to your kids about staying safe. In this blog, our Tuscaloosa injury lawyers will talk school bus safety. In upcoming blogs, we will discuss teen driving safety and the importance of keeping your young bicyclists and pedestrians safe while traveling to and from school. Alabama school bus accidents can be devastating — both for bus passengers and for other motorists on the road. But what is too often overlooked is the risk of Tuscaloosa pedestrian accidents around buses; nationwide a significant number of all bus fatalities involve pedestrians — often students who are boarding or deboarding. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports about 1,400 people have been killed in school bus accidents in the last decade. Thousands more have been injured.

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Roof Strength Tests of Large Pickups

Aug 16, 2011 - ATV/SUV Rollover Accidents by

The Ford F-150 and Toyota Tundra are the only large pickups to earn the top rating of good in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s roof strength evaluation that measures occupant protection in rollover crashes. The Nissan Titan is rated acceptable for rollover protection. The Chevrolet Silverado (and twin GMC Sierra), and Dodge Ram are rated marginal. The ratings apply only to crew cab versions of these pickups. To measure roof strength, a metal plate is pushed against one corner of a vehicle’s roof at a constant speed. The maximum force sustained by the roof before 5 inches of crush is compared to the vehicle’s weight to find the strength-to-weight ratio. This is a good assessment of vehicle structural protection in rollover crashes.

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August a Deadly Month for Car Accidents

Aug 15, 2011 - Car Accidents by

The Alabama Highway Patrol reported a busy weekend — responding to at least three injury accidents on Sunday afternoon. Our Tuscaloosa personal injury lawyers remind motorists that August is traditionally the deadliest month of the year. Accidents in Etowah and DeKalb counties were reported on Sunday, including an Alabama trucking accident on I-59 near mile marker 176. That accident occurred about 1:30 a.m. The 57-year-old driver was injured. Two teens from Boaz were injured on Alabama Highway 179. That accident involved a 16- and 17-year-old in a Mitsubishi. A third accident involved a 1995 Ford on County Road 163. MSN reports that August is the deadliest month on the road. Nearly 3,000 motorists died on the nation’s roads in August of 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Statistics for last year are due out later this summer.

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Children with ADHD More Likely to be Injured in an Alabama Pedestrian Accident

Aug 3, 2011 - Personal Injury by

Pedestrian accidents in Alabama involving children happen all too often and there’s a new group of children on this high-risk list that are especially prone to these types of accidents — children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD-C ). Recent research, provided by the University of Alabama at Birmingham, concludes that these individuals chose to cross roads and intersections in riskier situations than other children. “Future efforts may focus on remediating executive deficits, which may, in turn, prevent pedestrian injuries in this at-risk population,” the researchers reported online ahead of the August issue of Pediatrics.

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Technology May Help Senior Drivers Avoid Risk of Alabama Car Accidents

Jul 25, 2011 - Car Accidents by

Technology is being used to help keep older drivers safe on the road. Senior driving safety is among the fastest growing health and safety issues in the nation as the 70 million baby boomers begin hitting the doors to retirement. Our Tuscaloosa personal injury lawyers know many families struggle with the issue of helping parents or older loved ones determine when the time has come to hand over the keys. Such conversations can be difficult, even contentious; yet it is a critical step in the aging process and can prevent a family member from being involved in a serious or fatal Alabama car accident. In Florida, the Silver Alert program uses digital highway signs to locate lost or confused seniors; in the three years since the program’s inception, 44 older drivers have been helped.

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Fewer Distracted Driving Car Accidents in Tuscaloosa Could Result from Proposed Ban

Jul 20, 2011 - Car Accidents by

The feds are making a major push to outlaw cell phone use by drivers nationwide in an effort to reduce to risk of car accidents in Tuscaloosa and elsewhere caused by drivers distracted by cell phones and text messaging behind the wheel. Our Tuscaloosa car accidents lawyers are frequently called to represent victims who are injured or killed in an accident caused by a driver who was not paying attention; cell phones continue to be a leading cause of distraction. Carolyn McCarthy, a Democratic Congresswoman from New York, has introduced the Safe Drivers Act of 2011 in Congress, which would make using a cell phone illegal while behind the wheel, except in cases of emergency. Alabama is one of a dwindling number of states with a distracted driving law aimed only at young drivers under the age of 18, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. A few states — including Ohio and Florida — still have no laws at all. Some 38 states have passed some form of a text messaging ban. The jigsaw of laws — combined with some resistance to act at all — has Congress pushing a nationwide solution to the issue.

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NTSB’s Most Wanted List Targets Motorists Most Likely to Experience a Fatal Car Accident in Alabama and Elsewhere

Jul 11, 2011 - Car Accidents by

The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) list of the “most wanted” drivers in the United States has been released. On this list are a number of drivers that are most likely to cause a car accident in Alabama and elsewhere. You bet drunk drivers in Alabama are on the list. These are drivers that cause serious and fatal accidents with alarming regularity — nationwide, more than one-third of all fatal crashes involve a drunk driver. Alabama is currently targeting drunk drivers. Governor Robert Bentley recently signed Senate Bill 361 into law. This law provides stricter penalties for those who have been convicted of a DUI in Alabama, according to WAFF 48 News. The new law requires that some convicted drunk drivers install ignition interlocks on their cars.

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Red-Light Cameras Coming to Even More Cities to Prevent Car Accidents in Alabama

Jul 5, 2011 - Car Accidents by

Red-light cameras will be installed in another city to reduce the risks of Alabama car accidents. Late last week, the Midfield City Council adopted a new ordinance that will allow for photographic traffic signal enforcement systems, or red-light cameras, to be installed at a number of intersections that have been deemed dangerous throughout city, according to Alabama Live. This ordinance could allow the city to be the first in Jefferson County to use red-light cameras to enforce traffic laws and to charge motorists a pretty penny for disobeying traffic signals. The ordinance was approved shortly after the state Legislature approved a bill, presented by Rep. Merika Coleman, D-Hueytown, which allows the city to use these red-light cameras. The bill was recently signed into law by Gov. Robert Bentley. Our Tuscaloosa car accident attorneys understand the dangers of intersection accidents and hope these cameras deter red-light runners. Once they’re installed, if you’re busted speeding through a red light the city can fine owners of vehicles $100 for the offense. Officials say that red-light runners are a big problem in Midfield, especially along stretches of the Bessemer Superhighway in the city.

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Alabama Personal Injury Attorneys Wish You and Your Family a Safe and Healthy Fourth of July

Jun 27, 2011 - Car Accidents by

Our Alabama Personal Injury & Wrongful Death Attorneys wish each of you a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July. Please celebrate responsibly, don’t drink and drive, and stay safe around water, whether it’s in the pool or on the boat. Summer is officially upon us, and many people will be out on the roads driving during the weekend, while others may enjoy boating on the state’s many lakes or on the Gulf of Mexico. Some may choose to stay close to home and enjoy barbecues, swimming and personal fireworks. Vehicle accidents: AAA estimates that about 39 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from their home over the long weekend, USA Today reports. That’s actually down from 40 million last year, and the national auto group attributes that to the nearly $1 increase in gas from this time last year.

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