Tag Archives: Injuries

by | October 31, 2012 · 6:07 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Hotel Fined $70,000 After Employee Loses Fingers During "Routine Test Of Emergency Generator Equipment"

“…a Toronto Hilton employee saw a leak during a routine test on the hotel’s emergency generator equipment. As he leaned in to get a better look, his hand slipped into a fan. The fan’s blades cut off his fingers…”

A hotel company has been fined $70,000 after one of its workers lost some of his fingers on the job.

Justice of the Peace Kevin Madigan fined Northstar Hospitality GP Inc., which owns the Hilton hotel, for violating the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Northstar Hospitality pleaded guilty for failing to ensure the generator’s parts were guarded.

The court added a 25 per cent surcharge to the fine, which goes toward a provincial government fund for victims of crimes.

For more:  http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1279358–hotel-owner-fined-70-000-after-worker-loses-fingers

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by | October 24, 2012 · 6:12 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Illinois Hotel Guest Files "Negligence Lawsuit" After Stepping In "Drainage Hole" In Parking Lot; Seeks $50,000 In Damages For Medical And Court Costs

“…it (was)…difficult to see a drainage hole in the parking lot. When he stepped in the hole, Wright says he tore his right meniscus and will need to have a full knee replacement in the next few years to repair the injury…”

An O’Fallon hotel is being sued after one if its guests allegedly hurt his knee when he stepped in a hole in the hotel’s parking lot. Samuel Wright filed a lawsuit Oct. 5 against Kingston Hotel Group LLC in St. Clair County Circuit Court.

According to the petition, Wright and his family were staying at the Candlewood Suites in O’Fallon in July 2011. Wright says he left the hotel through the west exit door to go to his car in the parking lot. The surface of the parking lot was exceptionally dark, Wright claims, because of some asphalt sealant the hotel had applied to it.

Wright accuses Kingston Hotel Group, the owner of the hotel, of negligence for allegedly failing to warn guests of the potential hazard in the parking lot. He asks for more than $50,000 in damages for medical expenses and court costs.

For more: http://madisonrecord.com/issues/366-personal-injury/247261-candlewood-suites-in-ofallon-sued-over-customers-trip-in-parking-lot

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by | October 16, 2012 · 6:02 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Texas Hotel Sued For "Negligence" After Man Slips And Falls Down Flight Of Stairs; Failure To Post Warning Of Wet Carpet

“…According to the lawsuit, the hotel had washed, shampooed or cleaned its carpets prior to Steele’s arrival and left them in a wet and slippery condition without any warning to Steele…”

The defendant is accused of negligence for failing to inspect its premises to be sure that they were free of unreasonably dangerous conditions, dry its floors after cleaning, limit access to areas in which the floors were not yet dry, warn its invitees of the existence of the wet floors, select and hire competent contractors in such a way as to ensure that they were not creating an unreasonable risk of harm to invitees.

A Louisiana man has filed a lawsuit against the owners of a Comfort Inn claiming that they failed to warn him that the carpet was wet, which caused him to fall down an entire flight of stairs. Walter Steele filed suit against Laxmi Lodging Inc. on Oct. 12 in the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division.

The incident occurred on Sept. 9, 2012 as Steele was attempting to exit a Comfort Inn in Palestine, Texas, owned by the defendant by the way of the staircase when his foot slipped on the wet flooring causing him to fall down an entire flight of stairs and onto the concrete floor.  The fall caused Steele serious and permanent disabling injuries to his back and spine.

The plaintiff is seeking damages for medical expenses, lost earnings, physical impairment, pain, suffering, mental anguish, and lost earning capacity.

For more:  http://setexasrecord.com/news/275705-hotel-owner-sued-after-patron-falls-down-flight-of-stairs

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by | September 29, 2012 · 6:51 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Hotel Guests At Risk Of Injury As Shower Door Glass Can Shatter With The "Force Of An Explosion"

“…court records (documented)…a federal lawsuit filed earlier this year against the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago. A woman, who stayed at the hotel in 2007, says she opened a shower door and suddenly “the force of an explosion” threw here “violently across the toilet” and caused her “serious injuries.” Pictures are filed with the lawsuit showing tiny particles of glass layered on the hotel bathroom and filling the toilet…”

Hotels need to be really vigilant about this problem…(says) a glass expert who may soon testify in three cases where guests were injured when their shower doors shattered… “The two main types of injuries are where their bodies get cut and the other ones are where they are walking out on glass and cutting their feet.”

Another couple posts video on Vimeo showing what allegedly happened to them during their Hawaiian honeymoon at the Ohana Hotel in Waikiki West. You can hear the water running from the shower, see his wife standing in the water, and feel her pain as she obviously had to find a way out through shattered glass all over the floor. The new groom, Lance Ogren, looks into his own home video camera and says, “I heard her start to open (the shower) and I heard a big crash.” Ogren tells CBS 11 news the hotel gave them an apology and a new room.

Meshulam says most shower doors have tempered glass which is heated and then cooled creating tension for durability. He demonstrated how hard it is to break slamming a hammer into a tempered glass shower door several times before it finally shatters. He says the door are considered safe because under stress they shatter into tiny pieces; however, he says there are several reasons why a shower door might explode.

One is a small crack, like the one in your windshield, that just slowly grows out like a spider web. “When it hits a certain part of the glass where all those internal tensions are residing then everything blows up.” He also says towel bars might not be installed properly. Or, doors may not slide on the tracks correctly. These can cause pressure over time. Finally, there could be a problem during the manufacturing process if a microscopic grain of nickel sulfide gets trapped inside the glass. This manufacturing defect is a “ticking time bomb.”

For more:  http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2012/09/28/cbs-11-investigates-shattering-shower-doors/

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by | September 11, 2012 · 6:10 am

Hospitality Industry Property Risks: West Virginia Hotel Fire Destroys 30 Rooms, Killing One Man

“…Witnesses told authorities the fire appeared to start in the top section of the motel’s west wing, but no cause has been determined… The fire destroyed about 30 rooms…”

The West Virginia Fire Marshal’s Office says a Louisiana man has died of burns he suffered during a weekend hotel fire. Media outlets identified the victim as 21-year-old Dustin McCellen.

The marshal’s office didn’t provide his hometown, and the chief investigator on the Wilsonburg blaze didn’t immediately respond to a message Tuesday.

McCellen was an oil and gas industry worker who was staying at the Towne House West Motor Lodge when it caught fire early Sunday morning.

No one else was injured. Many of the rooms were rented by other gas workers who had gone home for the weekend.

For more:  http://www.wowktv.com/story/19511136/la-gas-worker-dies-of-burns-from-wva-motel-fire

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by | August 2, 2012 · 9:39 am

Hospitality Industry Property Risks: Las Vegas Hotel "Swamp Cooler" Fire Injures 14 People As Smoke On Upper Floors Forces Evacuation

“…an accidental malfunction in the swamp cooler, a device that cools air through the evaporation of water, caused the fire…The unit caught fire and sent smoke into the hotel, prompting the evacuation of some of the upper floors of the building…”

A malfunctioning swamp cooler is being blamed for a roof fire at Las Vegas’ Treasure Island Hotel that left 14 people with minor injuries, officials said.

The fire broke out atop the hotel Tuesday morning, the Las Vegas Sun reported. The fire was put out by 9:36 a.m. Emergency responders checked out 14 people for smoke inhalation and treated them at the scene, officials said. The fire caused an estimated $20,000 worth of damage to the hotel, said Clark County Fire Chief Bertral Washington.

For more:  http://www.fireengineering.com/news/2012/08/02/vegas-hotel-fire-blamed-on-swamp-cooler.html

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by | July 25, 2012 · 6:45 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Illinois Hotel Sued For Negligence By Man In "Slip And Fall" Accident; Claims Permanent Injuries

“…(hotel  is accused) of negligence for allegedly failing to keep the hotel lobby floor clean and dry. He says he has suffered — and will continue to suffer — physical and mental pain and anguish. Cattani is asking for an undetermined amount of money for medical expenses and lost income in addition to court costs…”

A Collinsville man claims the “carelessness” of owners and managers of a local hotel led him to slip and fall in the lobby. Bobby Cattani filed a lawsuit July 10 in Madison County Circuit Court against Lodging Hospitality Management, doing business as Doubletree Hotel. Hotel owner, Colhot LLC, is also named as a defendant.

Just after 11 p.m. on Aug. 2, 2010, Cattani says he slipped and fell on a “liquid substance that had accumulated on the floor” of the Doubletree Hotel on Eastport Plaza Drive. He says he severely and permanently injured numerous parts of his body along with his nervous system.

For more:  http://www.madisonrecord.com/news/245567-doubletree-hotel-in-collinsville-sued-over-mans-lobby-slip-and-fall

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by | June 20, 2012 · 6:15 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Virginia Hotel Sued For $250,000 By Guest Who Fell Down Stairwell During Power Outage; No Emergency Lights Above Door To Stairwell

“…(the plaintiff) unknowingly stepped into a stairwell and fell 14 steps, according to the suit. It states there were no emergency lights above the door to the stairwell or on the stairwell itself. Christians claims he received permanent injuries, and continues to have physical pain, mental anguish and lost wages…”

A Loudoun County man is suing The Homestead in Hot Springs after falling down a flight of stairs during a power outage at the luxury hotel and spa. Allan Christian, of 20934 Winola Terrace, Ashburn, filed the $250,000 lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court, according to online court records.

He was in one of the hotels’ restaurants at about 9 p.m. June 19, 2010 when the lights went out, leaving it “pitch black,” according to the complaint. Resort staff told Christian and other guests the lights would be on again soon, and served food to them, the complaint states. However, candles and flashlights weren’t handed out or placed in areas where people may need to walk, it states.

About 40 minutes after the power went out, Christian got up to move in the direction of the bathroom, and used “the furniture and staff to guide his movement,” the lawsuit states.

For more:  http://www.nvdaily.com/news/2012/06/northern-virginia-man-sues-luxury-resort.php

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by | June 4, 2012 · 6:19 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Missouri-Based Restaurant Chain Settles $10 Million "Drunk Driving Lawsuit" Brought By Family Of Brain-Damaged Boy

The parents of Abdallah Khader, now 6, sought $10 million from Kansas City, Mo.-based Applebee’s in a civil lawsuit…Abdallah Khader suffered damage to 80% of his brain in the crash, and his family incurred massive medical expenses. Their lawsuit asked for $10 million to cover round-the-clock medical care along with lost future earnings, mental anguish, and pain and suffering — all typical damages in a personal-injury case.

The Khaders’ lawsuit accused workers at a Mansfield, Texas, Applebee’s of serving a man 23 drinks in less than two hours, leading him to drive drunk and crash into the Khaders’ car. A law firm’s investigation was key to the Applebee’s settlement, the family’s lawyer said.

The firm’s investigation dug up the alleged drunken driver’s Applebee’s receipts, which showed he paid for nearly two dozen drinks in a two-hour span. Police determined the driver’s blood-alcohol level was more than three times Texas’ legal limit, which is 0.08%.

The Khaders sued Applebee’s and the drunken driver, a repeat DWI offender who also faces criminal charges related to the crash. The driver’s criminal trial is pending, KTVT reports.

For more:  http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/31/tablogsfindlawcom2012-injured-idUS369201020620120531

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by | May 4, 2012 · 10:13 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: California Restaurant Found "40% Liable" In $2.5 Million Jury Award To Woman Who Had "Chicken Bone" Stuck In Her Throat While Eating

“…In a verdict delivered April 26 in Contra Costa County, a jury determined Foster Farms, which supplied the poultry for the chicken strips on the pizza, was 60 percent liable for her injuries and Pizza Bytes, which runs several Round Table restaurants in the San Francisco area, was 40 percent responsible…”

A California jury has ordered a poultry producer and a pizza restaurant franchisee to pay $2.5 million to a woman who got a chicken bone stuck in her throat. Calla Felicity, 59, told the Contra Costa Times damage from the bone has turned her from a healthy woman to someone who becomes completely exhausted after walking two blocks. She said she spent 33 days in the hospital immediately after the injury in 2010 with 11 operations and has been back in the hospital several times.

Felicity was eating a barbecued chicken pizza with her mother at a Round Table restaurant in South San Francisco when the bone got stuck.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2012/05/04/Woman-awarded-25M-for-chicken-bone/UPI-68391336149120/#ixzz1tvRtzM61

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