What is a Blast Injury?

What is a blast injury? A blast injury is some type of physical trauma from a direct or indirect explosion, often resulting in injuries to internal organs, the brain, and extremities. 

Chemical plants are uniquely hazardous and prone to explosions when negligent mishandling of chemicals occurs, so be sure to work with a New Orleans chemical plant explosion lawyer.

How Blast Injuries Happen

A blast injury is a complex type of injury that can impact a variety of body components. The Department of Defense defines several types of blast injuries based on what occurs and the resulting outcome. 

Consider the following common types of blast injuries:

• Primary blast injuries: Often due to high pressures created by explosions, these often cause crushing of the body and internal injuries, including blast lung, tympanic membrane rupture and middle ear damage, abdominal hemorrhage and perforation, eye rupture, concussions, and related injuries.
• Secondary blast injuries: These occur when strong blast winds behind the pressure cause fragments and debris to strike a person, often causing blunt force or penetrating the skin. This may include eye penetration, penetrating ballistic, which is fragmentation injuries, or closed or open brain injuries.
• Tertiary blast injuries: These occur when strong blast winds and pressure gradients accelerate the body and cause blunt force injuries that are more like what may happen in a fall, such as broken bones, crushing injuries, blunt injuries, traumatic amputations, or brain injuries.
• Quaternary blast injuries: This type of injury results from explosive material, such as heat or light, and exposure from some type of toxic substance, such as gasses, fuels, or metals, causing burns, blindness, or inhalation-related respiratory injuries.
• Quinary blast injuries: These types of blast injuries are the clinical consequence of post-detonation of contaminants, such as chemicals, biological materials, or radiological materials, such as bombs, often resulting in viral or bacterial infections, radiation exposure, or chemical burns.

Understanding the expansiveness of blast injuries is critical, as victims may need to seek legal guidance to pursue compensation for any losses. The losses you suffer from such an injury can be devastating, often causing serious and ongoing pain.

Let the team at Scott Vicknair Injury Lawyers guide you in pursuing full and fair compensation after such an accident occurs, and learn more about our firm today.

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Complications Stemming from Blast Injuries

A person suffering a chemical plant blast injury could fast numerous injuries, many of them resulting in serious consequences. One of the reasons to work with an injury attorney in a blast injury case is that you need to explore all potential complications that may come from such accidents. Here are some examples:

• Amputation: In situations where you lose a limb, for example, you may suffer ongoing pain and limitations on your quality of life.
• Loss of mobility: Depending on the type of injury, you may suffer loss of mobility, meaning you cannot walk or may not be able to engage in activities you once enjoyed.
• Loss of hearing: Loss of hearing is a catastrophic injury resulting from many types of blast injuries.
• Loss of vision: Damage to the eye can lead to loss of vision, which impacts a person’s quality of life.
• Loss of ability to work: Many people who struggle with these injuries may not be able to return to work and do the things they once did.
• Chronic pain and suffering: Many conditions cause burns and nerve damage that can ultimately lead to chronic pain, limiting quality of life.
• Emotional trauma: Many people struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder, trauma, and ongoing depression as a result of this type of event.
• Fatalities: It is critical to recognize many people do not survive blast injuries or may die soon after them as a result of their injuries.

In each of these situations, it may be possible to prove that those responsible for your losses should pay for them. To do that, we need to consider why they occurred, who is to blame, and what could compensate you for your losses. 

If you were hurt on another person’s property or at work due to a blast injury, seek out an attorney to guide you in pursuing fair compensation for your losses.

Compensation for Blast Injuries

Depending on the situation, you may be able to show that someone else was responsible for the injury and, as a result, should provide compensation for your losses. Your attorneys will work closely with you to better understand what you are facing and develop a claim that is robust enough to cover all of those losses. Some of the losses you may be eligible to receive include:

• Compensation for medical expenses: This may include any medical care you receive, including emergency care, surgeries, ongoing rehabilitation, and life-saving or life-rebuilding support you need from a medical perspective.
• Compensation for lost wages: In many situations, victims are unable to go back to work and may not be able to work at all, leading to compensation for ongoing earning loss.
• Pain and suffering: Victims of blast injuries are likely to suffer serious losses related to pain and suffering, including damage to relationships, quality of life, and ongoing pain from unhealed wounds.
• Emotional trauma: You may be owed compensation for the mental anguish and ongoing struggles you face with emotional health after such an accident.
• Punitive damages: In some situations, it may be possible to prove that the accident was due to particularly heinous actions. This could help you qualify for punitive damages.

If your family member died in such an accident, do not wait to seek legal guidance from our team. We will work with you to provide support and resources to guide you in your full recovery of losses. Let us fight for justice for your loved one, and be sure to review our FAQs section to learn more.

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Seek Out a Free Consultation from Our Blast Injury Attorney Now

Scott Vicknair Injury Lawyers are trusted, experienced, and passionate about helping victims navigate some of the most challenging legal areas. 

Turn to our chemical plant explosion lawyer in New Orleans now to learn more about your rights to compensation. We would be happy to offer you a free consultation if you suffered a blast injury.