Lincoln Personal Injury Lawyer

WoodMaster Outdoor Furnaces Recalled Due To Fire Hazard

Chrissie Cole — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:34:00 GMT

WoodMaster AFS 900 outdoor furnaces are being recalled due to a defect in the temperature gauge that poses a fire and burn hazard.

To this date the company has received 12 reports of fire, three of which reported blisters and minor hand burns.

The recalled furances were sold in black, brown, camo, grey, green, red and taupe, with a WoodMaster logo on the front.

Consumers should contact Northwest Manufacturing for a free repair kit. In the meantime, the furnaces should not be used.

Consumer Information: Contact Northwest Manufacturing at (800) 932-3629 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT, Monday through Friday, or visit www.AFS900recall.com.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Jason Evans Associates Recalls Children’s Hooded Jackets

Chrissie Cole — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:12:00 GMT

Jason Evans Assoc. LLC, of New York, recently announced a voluntary recall of Children’s Hooded Jackets because the drawstring can pose a strangulation hazard to children.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued guidelines (pdf) in 1996 to help prevent children from strangling or getting entangled on the neck and waist drawstrings of upper garments.

To date, the company has not received any report of injury related to the recall.

The recalled jackets have a drawstring through the hood of the garment. They were sold in boy sizes 4, 5, 6 and 7 in colors black/grey. The RN number 30842 printed in the center back neck and style number 1708 is printed on the hangtag on the center back neck.

Consumers should remove the drawstrings immediately or return them to the place of purchase or to Jason Evans Associates to receive a refund.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, please contact Jason Evans Associates toll-free at (888) 683-0063 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Butter Flavoring Chemical Removed From Popcorn Because of "Popcorn Lung" Concern

Jenny Albano — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 00:32:29 GMT

ConAgra Foods Inc., the nation's largest microwave popcorn maker, has decided to remove the chemical diacetyl from the buttery flavoring in Orville Redenbacher and Act II popcorn. This decision came after a pulmonary specialist at Denver's National Jewish Medical and Research Center claimed that a consumer developed lung disease from inhaling the fumes from microwaving popcorn numerous times a day. This would be the first instance of a consumer developing "popcorn lung" from the flavoring chemical.

ConAgra spokeswoman Stephanie Childs said the company decided to remove the butter flavoring diacetyl from its popcorn because of the risk the chemical presents to workers who handle large quantities.

Many workers at popcorn plants have developed bronchitis and asthma, and some have even developed bronchiolitis obliterans, a rare lung disease which can be fatal.

ConAgra stated that they did not know when they would be able to replace the flavoring chemical, but stated that it would be taken out of popcorn within the next year.

The company has been attempting to change things at the popcorn plants to reduce workers exposure to the chemical. ConAgra does not believe that diacetyl has any effect on consumers, and they are making this change to protect their employees.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jenny Albano

USDA to Give $5.5 Million to Study Origin of E. Coli in Produce

Jenny Albano — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 23:10:59 GMT

The USDA has announced that they will be giving $5.5 million to study E. coli in produce. Officials from the agency want to make sure the deadly bacteria stays out of food.

The money is being given to a California institute that will study the origin of E. coli 0157:H7, which is a bacteria that can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and some life threatening complications such as Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome.

"This research will help producers identify the sources of E. coli 0157:H7 and ways to avoid contamination," stated Mike Johanns, the Agriculture Secretary.

The Centers for Disease Control identified 17,252 laboratory-confirmed cases of food poisoning in 2006 using a surveillance tool that studies 10 states, or about 15 percent of the U.S. population.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to the section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jenny Albano

I35W Minneapolis Bridge Collapses; 30 Missing

Courtney Mills — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 13:15:11 GMT

The I-35W Interstate highway bridge in downtown Minneapolis plummeted over 60 feet into the Mississippi River, killing at least 7. Nearly thirty people remained missing as the search continued into the next day for cars that fell from the bridge into the river.

The bridge was full to capacity of rush hour traffic when the accident occurred, which may have caused it to break up into sections before falling into the river. Drivers were then immediately thrown down onto the underlying truss structure.

Minneapolis Police were estimating the catastrophe as a structural collapse above all. The bridge had been under construction during rush hour with bumper-to-bumper traffic before the accident occurred. Search/recovery operations continued up until 1am Thursday morning, whereupon searchers determined to call off further recovery activities until the next morning.

Authorities are certain to discover dozens of cars in the water and possibly more fatalities during salvage operations Thursday and Friday. The reasons rescuers called off all searches Wednesday night was due to the inherent danger of working around the fallen bridge structure in the dark.

Dr. Joseph Clinton, Chief of Emergency Medicine, stated that the trauma center had seen so far 30 patients, six of whom were critical. There had been at least one drowning victim thus far, but authorities expect to find far more in the detritus around the fallen bridge.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Car and Motorcycle Accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Courtney Mills

Lawmakers Override Governor's Veto of Teen Driving

Christina Cole — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 20:33:36 GMT

Nebraska Lawmakers listened to the many pleas to save teenagers' lives by voting to override the Governor's veto of a bill that would set new restrictions on teenage drivers.

Votes were 33-7 to reinstate Legislative Bill 415. 30 votes are needed for a bill to become law over a governor's veto. The bill sets the limits on passengers and cell phone use by teenagers that are yet to have full driving allowances. January 1st the measure will go into effect.

The Governor vetoed the bill on Wednesday, saying the state government should not have to substitute for parental responsibility.

State Sen. John Harms of Scottsbluff, sponsor of LB 415, said he was inundated with calls from parents urging an override.

"We have a responsibility here to protect the very future and that's our teenagers," Harms said. "It's all about safety. It's about teenagers' lives."

Lincoln Senator Avery said, the bill would support parents in setting limits but not substitute them. While other lawmakers say parents and government have a responsibility to guide teens while they are still learning.

Under LB 415, a teen driver holding a provisional operator's license will be limited to one passenger under age 19, except for family members.

Teens with provisional, learner's and school permits will be prohibited from talking on cell phones, sending text messages or using other interactive electronic devices while driving.

Under the bill, the cell phone and passenger provisions will be secondary offenses, meaning that police officers could not stop young drivers unless they had committed some other traffic violation.

According to the Nebraska Highway Safety Office, teen drivers were involved in 181 fatal car crash from 2002-2005. In these crashes 168 teens were killed along with 40 other people.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole

Bill Proposes Restricting Teen Drivers

Christina Cole — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 11:23:25 GMT

Nebraska could help save more teenagers' lives with a law to keep them from driving at night, using a cell phone and having a crowd of passengers along while operating a vehicle, state lawmakers were told.

Chealander, testifying in front of Legislature's Transportation Committee, supports a bill proposed by State Senator John Harms of Gering to tighten state teen driving laws in Nebraska. He further states it's a "deadly mixture of immaturity, inattention and inexperience."

Teenagers are five times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash if two or more teenagers are in the vehicle as passengers.

Since passing a graduated licensing law in 1999, Nebraska has seen a reduction in teen traffic accidents. The law eases young drivers into full driving privileges. Accidents involving 16 to 20-year-old drivers have declined 23 percent.

In January a report made by the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety said Nebraska still has room to improve upon their safety.

The bill Harm's is proposing is backed by the Safety board, which would tighten teen driving laws in six main ways:

â€¢ Teens holding a provisional operator's license - an interim step between a learner's permit and a full-fledged license - could not drive with more than one passenger under age 21 and not a family member.
â€¢ Teen drivers could not use devices such as cell phones, text-messaging devices, laptop computers or personal digital assistants.
â€¢ Teens could not drive without an adult after 10 p.m. The current driving curfew is midnight.
â€¢ To obtain a full-fledged license, a teen driver would have to drive one year without traffic offenses on a provisional license.
â€¢ Before getting a provisional license, a teen driver would have to drive six months without traffic offenses on a learner's permit.
â€¢ Teens who do not take a driver's education course would have to practice driving at least 60 hours, including 10 hours at night, with a parent or other qualified adult to obtain a learner's permit.

While no one testified in opposition, some members questioned whether it could be suggested that requiring the teaching of driver's education in the schools might be effective for reducing teen accidents.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole

First Vioxx Trial in Midwest Questions Merck's Motives

Dan Friedman — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 16:22:21 GMT

A jury in Edwardsville, Illinois is listening to the evidence as lawyers for Patricia Schwaller argue that her 2003 death was caused by Vioxx. Ms. Schwaller took the drug for 20 months before she had a heart attack. Her attorneys are arguing that Merck's own documents show that the company put profits ahead of people.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Dan Friedman

Woman in Critical Condition after Car Accident

Christina Cole — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:10:11 GMT

A Nebraska woman is in critical condition after a car accident in which she was struck by a vehicle on Sunday while outside her car helping care for an injured dog on the highway.

According to Officials - the woman, 36, of Linocln, Nebraska was driving when she came upon another vehicle which was stopped in the roadway. The driver had hit a dog on the road and stopped to make sure the injured animal was okay.

The woman and her daughter stopped and got out of their vehicle to help the woman with the dog that was lying between both vehicles. A third car was traveling along when he noticed the vehicles were stopped.

Unable to make a safe stop due to the snow-covered road, he attempted to go into the westbound lane to avoid the vehicles. When the three on the roadway saw he would not be able to stop, they ran for the roadside. Marquis was struck in the westbound lane of the highway by the Lamping vehicle as she ran toward the north shoulder of the highway. The accident happened just before 9 p.m.
Marquis was transported to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa by the Garner Ambulance Service, then flown to Saint Marys Hospital in Rochester, Minn., by an emergency helicopter. A spokesperson said she was in critical condition.

There were no other injuries in the accident which is still under investigation.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole

Trooper, 2 Others Injured in Car Crash

Christina Cole — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 16:17:24 GMT

A Nebraska State Trooper and two women, passengers in seperate vehicles, were involved in a three-vehicle-accident on Interstate 80.

The Trooper was checking water levels of Platte River with his vehicle facing east on the shoulder of the road. His Dodge Durango was hit by a car a going eastbound. When he went to check on the car that crashed into his SUV, that car was struck by another car.

Both drivers of the cars were arrested on suspicion of drinking under the influence, say County Sheriff's Office. The crash is still under investigation.

One passenger was airlifted to Creighton University Medical Center in critical condition.

The passenger of the other car was listed in serious condition at BryanLGH Medical Center in Lincoln. Another passenger of the car was flown to Lincoln Hospital after it took 30 minutes to free her from the car. The passenger in the backseat was uninjured.

The Trooper was transported to Midlands Community Hospital with a leg injury and bumps and bruises. He was treated and released.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Christina Cole