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A Wrongful Death Suit In New York Settled For $11 Million
During the sixth day of trial in a wrongful death suit brought by the estate of a steelworker who died 13 days after falling into a vat of boiling water and molten metal because of a gap in a guardrail that had existed for more than a decade a settlement totaling about $11 million was reached last week.
The suit was filed on behalf of Pamela Fuhr and the estate of Anthony Fuhr by attorneys Robert J. Mongeluzzi and Brian E. Fritz of Saltz Mongeluzzi Barrett & Bendesky.
According to court papers, Anthony Fuhr, an employee of International Mill Service, used to operate a 'scarfing machine,' a device that uses a massive torch to remove imperfections from large slabs of steel.
During the scarfing process, molten steel drops into a vat of water, creating a mix of molten metal and steaming water that fills the room with steam.
Mr. Mongeluzzi told the jury that Mr. Fuhr had to walk away from the machine 50 times per day to ensure that the slab was properly loaded onto a railroad car before beginning the scarfing process on the next slab.
According to Mr. Mongeluzzi, Mr. Fuhr had to walk past a gap in the guardrail each time. Mr. Fuhr fell into the vat and suffered burns over 97 percent of his body on Valentine's Day of 2003.
His burns were so severe, that doctors could not administer intravenous pain killers, said Mr. Mongeluzzi.
Mr. Mongeluzzi argued that the accident could have been prevented if Envirosource Management Incorporated had properly assessed the risk in the workplace and insisted that the guardrail be extended.
The insurer of Envirosource Management Incorporated agreed to pay $10 million and to waive a workers' compensation lien of $997,000 and thus settled the case.