The Gulf of Mexico holds vast reserves of oil and gas that are crucial to America’s economic strength. Offshore structures such as offshore drilling rigs are used by energy companies to explore for, drill, extract, process and store the petroleum and natural gas which lie beneath the sea bottom.
Getting this oil and gas out of the ground and to the refinery can be tough, dangerous work; accidents can happen at any moment, injuring or even killing offshore workers.
How dangerous is it? Between 2001 and 2010, the U.S. Minerals Management Service reported 69 offshore deaths, 1,349 injuries and 858 incidents of fires and explosions on offshore rigs in the Gulf of Mexico.
If you have been injured in an accident aboard an offshore oil rig or platform and are unable to work because of your injuries, you probably have a lot of worries about what’s going to happen next. How are you going pay your medical bills? How are you going to support your family? Will you ever be able to return to work again?
Maritime law gives injured offshore workers the right to seek compensation for the pain, suffering and economic losses resulting from their injuries. However, the laws that protect injured workers in land-based occupations don’t necessarily apply to maritime workers injured in on-the-job offshore mishaps. To ensure you get the maximum compensation you deserve, you need an offshore accident attorney with extensive experience in maritime law to represent you.
How A Houston Offshore Accident Attorney Can Help
The Houston offshore accident attorney team Ricardo N. Gonzalez & Associates protect the rights of injured offshore workers in Houston, Galveston and all along the Gulf Coast. We help offshore workers injured while working on:
- Fixed platforms
- Floating platforms
- Drill ships
- Jack-up drilling rigs
- FPSOs (floating production, storage, and offloading systems)
- FLNG (floating natural gas) facilities
- Compliant towers
- Semi-submersible platforms
- Gravity-based structures
- Spar platforms
- Tension-leg platforms
- NUIs (normally unmanned installations)
- Artificial islands
Adverse weather, equipment failures, product defects, safety violations and human error are just a few of the causes of accidents aboard these offshore structures.
Getting to and from the work site can be risky as well; many mishaps occur while workers are transferring onto and off of boats, transfer baskets or helicopters. Injuries can be quite secure and include broken bones, brain and spinal cord injuries, burns, internal injuries, crush injuries, blindness, deafness and PTSD.
Have You Been Injured in an Offshore Accident?
If you have been injured in an offshore accident, please contact the law offices of Ricardo N. Gonzalez & Associates without delay. Depending on the circumstances in your case, we can help you recover compensation for maintenance (living expenses), cure (medical expenses), pain and suffering (including emotional trauma, economic losses and more.
The maritime attorneys of Ricardo N, Gonzalez & Associates are located in Houston, but we represent injured maritime workers all over the Gulf Coast – from the Rio Grande to the Florida Keys. We are familiar with state, federal and international maritime laws including:
- Jones Act
- Longshoreman and Harbor Workers Compensation Act
- Outer Continental Shelf Act
- Death on the High Seas Act
If you have been injured in an offshore accident and are unsure of how to proceed, contact us to schedule a free consultation with one of our offshore accident lawyers. We will be happy to review your case and discuss options for moving forward. Don’t delay – there are statutes of limitations for filing an offshore injury claim.
