Will Delashaw didn’t have to die.
The 33-year-old man was hospitalized with a severe lung injury after being exposed to a mysterious chemical on July 2 while working at Daikin America Inc.’s plant in Decatur, Alabama. Two other workers with Delashaw that day were also hospitalized with lung injuries despite all three wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) and respirators. One of the workers died from his toxic exposure injuries on Aug. 10.
Delashaw was transferred to the intensive care unit at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and clung to life for nearly three months before succumbing to his injuries on Sept. 28. His family knew that if the husband and father of two young children had survived, he would need a lung transplant and medical attention for the rest of his life. And he would likely never work again.
Alabama workers injured or killed on the job are automatically entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Dunson’s family hired Beasley Allen’s on-the-job injury attorney Kendall Dunson to investigate whether Daikin or others were at fault for the toxic exposure accident at the fluorochemicals manufacturing plant.
Dunson discovered that Deleshaw’s case wasn’t an isolated incident. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a Daikin worker died in 2019 after being exposed to an unknown chemical while on the job.
Delashaw’s lawsuit accuses Daikin America of not taking measures to ensure the safety of its employees. Dunson is also investigating to see if negligence on the chemical manufacturer or PPE maker may have contributed to the workers’ injuries.
Daikin knew or should’ve known that the level of protection they provided to their employees would not keep them safe in that environment, that they should not have been in that environment, or they should’ve been fully informed as to the risk associated with that job and let them decide if it’s worth my life or my health to be in this employment.
– Kendall Dunson, On-the-job Injury Lawyer
If you are representing a client who has suffered lung injuries after being exposed to a chemical or gas while working at Daikin’s Decatur, AL plant, we can help. It’s important to have an experienced industrial accident lawyer on your side to help you recover the most for your client when dealing with chemical and toxic exposure lawsuits.
“The facts speak for themselves,” Dunson says. “You have multiple incidents that refer to a mystery gas that is injuring and killing people. This shouldn’t have happened again.”
Toxic Exposure & On-the-Job Injury Attorney
Nearly 3 million U.S. workers are injured on the job every year, not including government employees. An additional 5,300 workers leave for work each year, tragically never to return to their home and family. These staggering figures are unacceptable. They demonstrate how far we have to go in creating safer work environments for everyone.
At Beasley Allen, our industrial accident lawyers believe in holding employers accountable for any safety oversight or violation that results in a worker’s debilitating on-the-job injury or death. Industrial machines and equipment manufacturers are also often to blame for worker injuries and fatalities due to a product defect. By holding employers and manufacturers accountable for safety failures, we help make our workplaces safer for everyone.
Our nationally recognized on-the-job injury attorneys have successfully litigated thousands of work-related injury and death claims, including product liability cases. If you or a family member have been injured on the job, call us to discuss your case. We have the resources to represent clients across the country while never losing sight of the individual.
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