Pennsylvania Injury Lawyer Blog

Accidents in which pedestrians are hit by cars occur every day throughout Pennsylvania and the U.S. Some, unfortunately, are fatal. Although some risks always exist when walkers and drivers share the roadway, you can take steps to protect yourself and your loved ones and decrease the chances of a pedestrian accident in Pennsylvania taking place.

For Pedestrians:

1. Wear bright or reflective clothing. Bright colors and jackets with reflective strips will help drivers see you. If you're walking at night, consider carrying a flashlight along with wearing reflective clothing.


2. Never trust drivers. Always make sure that drivers heed a stop sign or streetlight before stepping out in front of them. Remember, the driver may be distracted and may not see you until it's too late.


3. Never cross in the middle of a block. Drivers are rarely looking for pedestrians in the middle of a block, and parked traffic can hide you from a driver's sight. Cross only at intersections, preferably those that are marked for pedestrians with crosswalks and signals.

For Drivers:

1. Avoid distractions. Use your cell phone or look at the map only when your vehicle is parked or safely alongside the road. If passengers are distracting you, remind them to stay quiet, especially in areas with lots of traffic or many pedestrians. Try recruiting passengers to help you scan the road ahead for hazards.


2. Obey all traffic laws. Come to a complete stop at all stop signs and red lights. Pay special attention to intersections and crosswalks. Do not speed up to slip through a yellow light; come to a stop instead if possible.


3. Take special care at dawn and dusk, when the setting sun or the gathering darkness may obscure your vision. If the sun is in your eyes, a pedestrian walking towards you may not realize you cannot see him or her. Drive more slowly if necessary and scan the edges of the road for movement that may signal a pedestrian.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, an experienced pedestrian accident lawyer in Pennsylvania or a skilled Philadelphia car injury attorney can help you get deserved compensation. Our attorneys at Anapol Schwartz have the knowledge and experience to examine the details of your accident and help you hold negligent parties responsible for their actions. Please call 1-866-735-2792 for a free consultation.

The Associated Press reported recently that an oil rig explosion off the coast of Louisiana has left eleven workers missing and seven with critical injuries. Two of the injured were admitted to the burn unit at the University of South Alabama Medical Center, where they are being treated for severe burn injuries.

Most of the 126 workers aboard the rig were able to escape safely. The rig continued to burn for several days after the workers were evacuated. Most of the evacuated workers were carried to land in a lifeboat while authorities searched the waters surrounding the burning rig for life rafts carrying the remaining workers.

At the time of the accident, the rig was drilling, but was not yet producing oil. The cause of the explosion is still unknown, though the U.S. Coast Guard and environmental authorities continue to investigate.

According to the federal Minerals Management Service, since 2001 there have been 69 deaths, 1,349 injuries, and 858 fires and explosions on Gulf Coast offshore oil rigs. Burn injuries threaten the lives of many workers on a daily basis, which is why employers whose work carries a high risk of such injuries are held to heightened standards to ensure they maintain a safe workplace. If an employee suffers burn injuries due to an employer's negligence, the employee may be able to recover compensation in order to pay medical expenses, lost wages, and other costs associated with the accident.

If you or a loved one has suffered a burn injury while at work, an experienced Central Pennsylvania burn injury lawyer can protect your rights as an accident victim while helping you seek the compensation you need. The skilled burn injury attorneys at Anapol Schwartz will listen carefully to the details of your case and help hold negligent parties accountable for their actions. Call the personal injury attorneys at Anapol Schwartz today at (866) 735-2792 for a free consultation.

Personal Injury Law Firm Anapol Schwartz is proud to announce the debut of its new Zocor drug side effects website: http://www.zocor-lawyers.com/. The new website contains valuable information about the Food and Drug Administration’s recent warnings of serious health risks and side effects linked to Zocor use. Anapol Schwartz welcomes visitors of the Zocor website to learn more about Zocor through pages covering Zocor FAQs, warnings and recalls, kidney failure, side effects, rhabdomyolysis, simvastatin, about Zocor, and Zocor lawsuits.

Zocor is manufactured by Merck & Co. and was approved in 1991 for consumer use in the U.S. With the patent for Zocor expiring in 2006, the market for generic brands grew; however, in 2008, the FDA issued the first of many warnings linking Zocor to incapacitating muscle injury, kidney failure, and other serious side effects. Anapol Schwartz’s new Zocor website is available as a resource for those who have suffered injury or experienced a new medical condition as a result of taking the cholesterol lowering drug.

Patients and consumers who suffer health problems due to dangerous drugs or poorly designed and manufactured pharmaceuticals have the right to pursue compensation for damages associated with their injuries. Victims of pharmaceutical negligence should not seek legal counsel and representation from just any attorney. A skilled products liability lawyer with many years of experience in pharmaceutical negligence litigation can help those afflicted by Zocor and other drugs receive full and just compensation. If you or someone you love has sustained rhabdomyolysis, kidney failure, or another side effect from taking Zocor, please visit Anapol Schwartz’s new website or call our Zocor injury attorneys at 866-735-2792 for a free consultation.

A Cheltenham High School senior was hit by a vehicle and killed in a recent accident, according to reporters at WPVI Channel 6 News. The girl was walking home with her twelve-year-old brother at about 10:00 p.m. The victim and her brother were less than a block from their house when a van struck the girl, who died at the scene. The van driver, whom witnesses described as a middle-aged white or Hispanic male, then fled the scene.

Police and the girl's family are urging anyone with information about the accident to come forward. Police followed a trail made by a leak in the van's engine for about a mile, but then lost track of the van. The van is described as a silver or grey GMC or Chevrolet work van. Police believe the van will show extensive front end damage as a result of the accident.

Persons who have committed a hit and run car accidents in Pennsylvania may have their licenses suspended and may face criminal charges, particularly when the hit and run results in injury or death. In addition, cases of reckless driving that cause injury should be investigated thoroughly, as the driver could easily be liable for damages to the injured person or their family in a civil suit.

Continue reading " Cheltenham High Schooler Killed in Hit-and-Run Accident " »

The Philadelphia Inquirer recently reported that a medical malpractice trial has begun in the case of a mother of five whose untimely death from breast cancer may have been caused by the hospital's delay in sending her ultrasound results to her primary care physician. The results did not reach the woman's primary care physician for over a year.

Key questions for the jury include whether the patient might have lived if she had been diagnosed a year earlier and who was responsible for the delay in passing her test results to her family doctor. The hospital claims that the test results were mistakenly faxed to the wrong number but that, in any case, the hospital is not responsible for the patient's death.

Continue reading " Medical Malpractice Trial Seeks Answers for Cancer Patient " »