Verdicts and Settlements Products Liability $2.25 Million Settlement for Maintenance Worker in Crane Accident

$2.25 Million Settlement for Maintenance Worker in Crane Accident

Kronk v. Philadelphia Tramrail

Case Summary:

Our client was a maintenance worker employed by Victaulic, Co. who fell twenty-five feet from a crane to the ground and suffered multiple fractures.

On the day that the accident occurred our client had been tasked with trouble shooting a malfunctioning crane that was suspended high above the ground at Victaulic’s foundry in Alburtis, PA.  The crane could only be reached by intermittent access points located on elevated walkways on the north and south walls of the foundry.  At the time that the crane stopped operating, the access point closest to the side of the crane that required inspection was blocked by a column.  In order to examine the crane our client climbed a ladder along the northern wall of the foundry and then stepped on to the crane. Our client then attempted to cross to the other side of the crane via an eight inch wide I-beam at which point he lost his balance and fell to the ground.

The crane, which was designed by defendant Philadelphia Tramrail and assembled by defendant Morris Material Handling, Inc., was defectively designed and assembled because it did not have a proper crossover walkway by which service personnel could safely cross between service platforms on opposing sides of the crane.  The only way to cross between platforms on the crane was across the thin I-bars that were not designed to be transversed by workers.  The Defendant’s own employees testified that they often observed workers in the field using the I-bars to cross between platforms because they did not have a safe walkway.

As a result of the fall, our client suffered a burst fracture of a vertebrae, a shattered femur, a puncture wound to his bicep and a traumatic head injury, among other injuries.  Our client’s medical expenses totaled over $250,000.

Outcome:

Defendant Morris Material filed for bankruptcy prior to the filing of this lawsuit and was subsequently liquidated.  Therefore, our client proceeded against only defendant Tramrail. The case settled after mediation for $2.25 million.   The case was handled by Philadelphia products liability attorney, Richard M. Jurewicz, of Galfand Berger. For more information on this case, please contact Mr. Jurewicz at [email protected] or call the law offices of Galfand Berger at 1-800-222-USWA (8792).