Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

Workers, including those who work around dangerous and volatile chemicals and equipment, are entitled to a safe workplace. Too often, though, their workplaces are not safe. When that lack of safety is the result of negligence and that negligence leads to serious injury or death, the injured worker (or the worker’s surviving family) may be entitled to hold those negligent parties accountable through a civil lawsuit. These lawsuits are often complex and nuanced, requiring the unique skills and knowledge of an experienced Oregon industrial accident lawyer.

One such workplace type is one that uses vessels whose contents are under pressure. On Nov. 12, 2025, friends, family, and coworkers marked the one-year anniversary of the massive tank explosion that killed two workers at a manufacturing facility that produced cosmetic and food colorings.

Back in mid-November 2024, investigators from the Chemical Safety Board swiftly pinpointed the cause of the explosion. A container — cooking vessel number 6 — blew up.

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A recent report from the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division revealed that an ironworker’s death at a Portland construction site last June was “preventable.” The worker’s death is a somber reminder that errors and negligence at worksites can have fatal consequences. If you have endured serious injuries (or you have lost a loved one) as a result of a workplace accident, the facts may dictate that you have the option to pursue a civil lawsuit against one or more entities. Talk to a knowledgeable Oregon industrial accident lawyer to learn more about your legal options.

The Oregon OSHA investigation, whose results the agency published in February, deemed a deadly accident that occurred last June during the renovation of a Northeast Portland high school to be “preventable,” according to an OregonLive report.

In that accident, a five-ton forklift carrying staircase railings ran over and crushed the ironworker. She died two days later. Oregon OSHA’s investigation found that the fatal accident resulted from “a series of flawed decisions.” Those errors exposed workers to “a struck-by hazard that could be expected to seriously injure or kill them,” according to the agency.

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Any worker dying in a workplace accident is a tragedy. What makes many of these tragedies so profoundly frustrating is that after-the-fact investigations reveal that the worker’s death was entirely preventable. Many workers lose their lives on the job when, with better training, better supervision, and better safety protections, their accidents could have been avoided entirely. Sometimes, these cases involve failures not only by the employer but by third parties, as well. When that happens, the worker’s family may be entitled to seek justice using an industrial accident lawsuit. For answers to your questions about this type of civil action, you should speak to an Oregon industrial accident lawyer experienced in litigating these sorts of cases.

A recent worker death was the latest example of a preventable accident, according to a state agency investigation. In early March 2024, a 32-year-old employee working at a paper mill in Camas, Washington died when a machine crushed him. A police report filed after the man died revealed that the worker “was working alone on a machine that had reportedly been having issues earlier in the day when the incident occurred.”

Not only had the machine had problems earlier in the day, but it also experienced issues during the man’s shift. According to a news release from the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, the man “called four times in one hour to ask for help troubleshooting” the machine. Still, he was left alone with the machine. Other employees only checked the station after boxes began backing up on the conveyor belt. By then, the machine’s metal arms had already crushed the man to death.

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Construction workers face many hazards on the job. Some are inevitable, but too many dangers – and serious or fatal accidents – arise because someone (or some entity) failed to do what they were required to do. Because major construction projects typically involve a variety of entities, including general contractors, subcontractors, and more, the blame for your construction accident may fall on someone other than your employer. That means that, with the advice and counsel of an experienced Oregon industrial accident lawyer, you can potentially recover vital compensation through the civil justice system.

When it comes to construction dangers, four areas stand out: falls, electrocution, cave-ins during trenching or excavation, and “struck-by” accidents. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, roughly ¾ of “struck-by” injuries involve heavy equipment like trucks and cranes. OSHA’s data also shows that approximately 25% of fatal “struck by vehicle” accidents involve construction workers, more than any other profession.

A local accident from late May was yet another example of those dangers. On May 30, a forklift rolled on top of S.D., an ironworker working on the massive “modernization” project at a century-old high school in Northeast Portland, pinning and crushing her. The worker died two days later.

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