InjuryBoard Norfolk Archives

• Fatal Railroad Crash Caused By Fatigued Crew

  John Cooper | March 27, 2007 3:06 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Mass Transit (Airline, Cruise Ship, Train, Bus)

  The National Transportation Safety Board finally acknowledged in March of 2007 that a overtired transportation crew was the reason for a head on collision of two freight trains in Mississippi almost two years ago that killed four people. This train wreck involved the failure of a crew to comply with the stop signal. The four people killed were the two crew members on each train. The final...

• Coal Train Derails But No one Hurt

  John Cooper | March 23, 2007 11:34 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Mass Transit (Airline, Cruise Ship, Train, Bus)

  On March 19, 2007, a Norfolk Southern coal train derailed in Suffolk, VA. At 2:00 a.m., the train with 4 locomotives was traveling at 40 mph when 37 of the 148 cars left the track. The train wreck left a pile of twisted metal and tons of coal on the ground and cutoff the power to 1,000 customers.According to the news release, there were no injuries or any release of hazardous material. The...

• More Death And Bad Results On The Weekends Was The Result Of A Recent Study Of Hospitals

  John Cooper | March 23, 2007 10:09 AM | 1 Comments
  Category: Medical Malpractice

  If you can avoid it, do not be in the hospital over a weekend when the less trained and inexperienced staff are in charge. This warning to avoid medical errors by timing your visits to the hospital is particularly true over holiday weekends like July 4th. The reason is simple in my opinion . All medical staff with seniority get off on the weekends and holidays. This leaves fewer experienced...

• Norfolk Pet Owners Concerned Over Food Recall

  Shannon Weidemann | March 22, 2007 9:36 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  Menu Foods, based in Canada, has issued a huge recall of dog and cat food. The recalled pet food may cause kidney failure. It includes over 90 brands of pet food and is the canned and foil packet "cuts and gravy" style food. The FDA reports that 16 pets have died so far.Worried owners around Norfolk are calling their veterinarians and pet stores to find out more information and whether their...

• In Pedestrian Crossing Cases, The Vehicle OperatorIs Not The Person Who Gets Hurt

  John Cooper | March 22, 2007 10:03 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  The human body is not designed to withstand an impact with a car. If you get hit at a crosswalk by an automobile, you are likely going to be seriously hurt. The lightest cars weigh several thousand pounds. Even if the vehicle is moving at a relatively slow speed, it may well break your bones if it hits you when you are crossing the street.We are handling several pedestrian crossing cases...

• Premises Liability or Slip and Fall Cases Are Very Hard to Win in States Like Virginia

  John Cooper | March 21, 2007 9:57 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Property Owner's Liability (Slip & Fall)

  In order to successfully recover for injuries caused by the owner or operator of a premises, you have to show that the business was negligent in that they failed to use ordinary care to keep their premises safe and to warn of hidden dangers. However, in Virginia, you also have to show that you, the injured person, are free from fault in causing your own injury and that the danger was not so...

• Sleep Deprivation Causes Traffic Accidents

  John Cooper | March 20, 2007 9:46 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  This year, for the first time, the federal government has moved the switch over to daylight savings time into early March. With this change, comes the early arrival of Spring sleep deprivation. Any change can disrupt people's sleep patterns. When sleep patterns are disrupted, a person operating a vehicle is not able to focus and concentrate as well as a person can when fully rested. As a...

• Beauracratic Problems At Veteran's Administration Hospitals Is Not New

  John Cooper | March 19, 2007 9:38 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  The news has been filled lately with problems at VA hospitals and Walter Reed Medical Center in particular. The problems range from decrepit, unsanitary facilities to long waits and beauracractic indifference to injured soldiers. Unfortunately, this was not news to me as a lawyer working on cases for military families who are hurt by someone's negligence. Over my 18 years of doing personal...

• Ski Injuries Can Be Severe

  John Cooper | March 16, 2007 12:40 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Property Owner's Liability (Slip & Fall)

  Skiing is a fun winter-time sport that the whole family can participate in. However, skiing injuries can be permanently disabling. The use of helmets while skiing has greatly improved safety on the ski slopes. Skiers often collide with each other and fixed objects like trees. If you have a helmet on, you greatly increase your odds of avoiding a permanent, disabling brain injury or even...

• Teen Driven Cars - A Dangerous But Inevitable Combination

  John Cooper | March 01, 2007 4:03 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death for 18 to 20 year old people in America. About 5,500 deaths and 450,000 injuries occur each year involving teen driving.Wrecks involving teens are probably most attributable to inexperience and judgment errors caused by not having enough time behind the wheel. Thus, practice driving is key. Each state, including Virginia, mandates a certain...