If you work at the Port of San Diego, you face the many dangers and hazards typical of maritime work. Accidents occur in ports and on ships, and the results can range from mild injuries to fatalities. If you have been caught in a workplace accident and injured, a San Diego maritime lawyer can help you figure out what compensation you are owed and how to get it.
The Port of San Diego
The port was first created in 1962 by the state of California’s legislature. A port was needed to manage activities in and around San Diego Bay, and today the port is the fourth largest in the state, behind Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Oakland. The member cities of the port include:
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- San Diego
- Chula Vista
- Imperial Beach
- National City
- Coronado
The Port of San Diego has two cargo terminals that take in all types of cargo but particularly break bulk, cement, forest products, fertilizer, and refrigerated goods. One of the two terminals is also the major entry port for imported vehicles from several companies.
Several cruise lines also operate at the cruise terminals here, sending several hundred thousand passengers on cruises to Mexico each year, as well as on recreational fishing cruises. In addition to cargo shipping and cruises, the port also supports a local commercial fishing industry.
The Dangers of Maritime Work
Workers for the port, cargo, container ships, cruise ships, and commercial fishing vessels in San Diego face severe hazards. On ships at sea, workers face several dangers:
- Capsizing or sinking
- Ship fires
- Falling overboard
- Equipment injuries
- Commercial fishing injuries involving trawls, winches, and processing equipment
For port workers, there are many dangers and potential accidents on the job. Cranes, trucks, forklifts, and other machinery used to move cargo are significant sources of injuries and fatalities in port areas.
The causes of these accidents may range from a miscommunication between workers to a negligent employer not keeping equipment in good working order.
There are many other possible ways workers can get injured in a port. Large warehouses storing cargo can be stocked badly and cause cargo to fall on workers. Falls into the water can be deadly if a rescue doesn’t happen immediately.
Exposure to toxic chemicals being shipped and stored can also be a problem. There are many reasons why these accidents happen, and negligence is often at the root of the cause, but sometimes accidents are also genuinely accidental.
Examples of Maritime Accidents
Several accidents have occurred in the Port of San Diego over the years, some of which caused fatalities.
Recreational Fatalities
Two people died in a boating accident in San Diego Bay in 2011 when the small recreational cruise vessel sank off the Port of San Diego coast.
The investigation concluded that the boat had been overloaded, contributing to two passengers’ capsizing and subsequent drowning.
The boat’s condition and equipment were also inadequate for its purpose. Everyone on the boat ended up in the water, and a lack of safety equipment may have played a role in the drowning of two of them.
Collision and Fatality
Boating collisions represent another significant risk for anyone working on a vessel or passengers on recreational and tourist ships. In 2009, a boy died in the water off the coast near the Port of San Diego after a U.S. Coast Guard boat collided with a recreational vessel. Five other people involved were injured, treated, and released.
Explosion Fatality
A seaman died aboard a vessel in the Pacific Ocean in 1999 when an explosive device went off in his hands. The man was a skipper aboard a Port of San Diego fishing boat taking recreational fishing tourists out to sea for an 18-day cruise.
A passenger had brought some homemade fireworks on the cruise, and the skipper had joined in lighting and throwing them overboard when the accident happened. The explosion damaged his arm and torso badly enough that he died.
This is an example of the skipper’s poor decision, but negligence could also be involved, as the captain should not have allowed the explosives to be used that way.
Legal Resources After a Maritime Accident
As a maritime worker, you have the rights and legal resources to get compensation after a workplace accident leaves you injured. If you die in a workplace accident, these rights extend to your surviving dependent loved ones.
Compensation can help you get your life back together as it covers the costs of medical treatments, medications, counseling, and lost wages. The laws that ensure you have access to this compensation are called maritime law.
Understanding maritime law, how it applies to your situation, and how to take advantage of it to get the money you need isn’t very straightforward. Knowing what to do next and how to do it can be confusing, especially if you are sick or injured.
This is where a San Diego maritime lawyer can be your best resource. This professional can guide you through the process of filing a claim, going through arbitration, making appeals, and even going to trial if it comes to that. With an experienced lawyer, you can get the money you owe to return to work.