Believe it or not, a law governing rights of sailors to recover damages if they’re hurt could come into play if relatives of six offshore oil rig workers killed in a helicopter crash Jan. 4 can file suit against the company that owned the copter. The deadly crash happened about 100 miles southwest of New Orleans. The off-shore oil rig workers who lost their lives may be protected under The Jones Act, a federal law that says an injured worker only has to show that “employer negligence played any part, even in the slightest, in producing the injury…” Offshore oil workers may recover damages if they are hurt in accidents traveling from one company location to another.
The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly known as The Jones Act, is a federal law that protects those who work at sea, on docks and now on offshore oil rigs. It was designed to shield them from the extraordinary dangers they face, including explosions, toxic gases, drowning and risks associated with diving, deafness, fires, helicopter accidents, hurricanes, icebergs and though rare, earthquakes and tsunamis. To protect all rights under the Jones Act, any seaman or off shore oil rig worker, or his or her family, should contact a Jones Act lawyer in case of death or injury before speaking to the employer or any of the employer’s representatives or subcontractors.
The helicopter involved in the crash was based in Lafayette, LA. Last June, another PHI medical helicopter crashed in the Sam Houston National Forest just north of Houston in early morning cloud cover that reduced visibility significantly.
