South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog

Jacqueline Delgado and her husband Renee have filed a Palm Beach County personal injury lawsuit against two sellers and a packing company. Jacqueline sustained serious burns when the NAPAfire and FIREGEL Gel Fuel she was using ignited, dousing her body in flames. Renee also was injured.

Not long after the Palm Beach Shores burn accident, the US CPSC and Napa Home & Garden recalled about 460,000 pourable NAPAfire and FIREGEL Gel Fuel jugs and bottles because the product could ignite suddenly and splatter onto people and objects when poured into a firepot that is still burning. Napa said there were 37 incidents reported, including 23 burn accidents.

In the Delgados’ Palm Beach products liability complaint, the couple is suing Fuel Barons and Losorea Packaging Co., TJX Companies, and Manhattan’s Pharmacy. Because Napa Home & Garden has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, it would prove very challenging to obtain anything from the beleaguered company, which is facing dozens of other products liability lawsuits over its dangerous gel fuel.

Florida Products Liability
There are a number of parties who can be held liable for a product defect. Three common kinds of products liability defects are manufacturing defects, design defects, and marketing defects. Although most injury cases require negligence to be a factor when proving liability, with Florida products liability, as long as the consumer got hurt because of the product, then there is likely grounds for the recovery of damages even if the other party didn't commit an act of negligence.

Napa Home and Garden’s gel fuel is not the only gel fuel reportedly to have caused serious burn injuries. The CPSC says this year it has received reports of 2 deaths and 57 injuries linked to gel fuel, decorative tables, and pots. One man, injured in another Florida burn accident, fell into a coma before later dying.

Calls to ban gel fuel heat up, Chicago Tribune, August 10, 2011

Napa Home & Garden Recalls NAPAfire and FIREGEL Pourable Gel Fuel Due to Fire and Burn Hazards, CPSC, June 22, 2011

Palm Beach County couple files lawsuit after burning incident, Sun-Sentinel, August 3, 2011

Related Web Resources:
Consumer Product Safety Commission

Burn Injury Information, Phoenix Society for Survivors

More Blog Posts:
Seven People Suffer Burn Injuries After Florida Motor Vehicle Crash Causes Deadly Gas Pump Fire at Ft. Lauderdale Station, South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, October 9, 2008

Florida Products Liability: Senate Passes Tort Reform Legislation That Could Limit Payouts from Manufacturers of Defective Autos, South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, March 24, 2011

Baby Deaths and Injuries Prompt Recalls of 1.7 Million Summer Infant Video Baby Monitors and 500,000 Bassinets by Burlington Basket Company, South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, February 16, 2011

In Florida, three state agencies and the Miami-Dade police are investigating the cause of burn injuries sustained by a disabled foster child at the Florida Club Care Center. The 12-year-old girl, who is a resident at the nursing home, suffers from severe cerebral palsy and is unable to communicate. She sustained second-degree burn injuries on her thigh and hand.

The Child Protection Team, which is comprised of doctors and nurses that determine whether a child has been the victim of abuse, identified the girl's burn injuries. In a letter to Florida Governor Charlie Christ, Doctor Michael Strong accused an Agency for Health Care Administration investigator of botching the probe into the girl’s injuries, in part due to the administrator's “lack of due diligence.” The AHCA, which is in charge of overseeing hospitals and nursing homes, says its investigator found no evidence to indicate that the young girl had been burned.

Strong said the Child Protection Team was worried that the safety of other residents at the nursing home were at risk. He believes that the girl was the victim of neglect.

The Department of Children and Families (DCF) has agreed to increase the number of visits to children at the Florida nursing home until Dr. Strong’s worries are addressed. The Florida Club Care Center has also agreed to have a “monitor” at the children’s nursing area every day until any problems are resolved.

DCF local administrator Alan Abramowitz says that workers think the girl was neglected but not abused on purpose. Previous to this incident, the North Miami Beach nursing home has been investigated for eight reports of neglect or abuse, including allegations of medical neglect, inadequate supervision, and physical injury. The Florida Club Care Center has been investigated for 66 reports of abuse or neglect involving adult residents. Only four of the incidents were verified.

Nursing Home Negligence
If the negligent or abusive acts of a doctor, nurse, or another worker at a Florida nursing home are the cause of a resident’s injuries, the victim and his or her family may be entitled to compensation for nursing home abuse and negligence.

Three agencies probe child's burns, Miami-Herald, October 3, 2008

Burn Degrees, Lifespan.org

Related Web Resources:

Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Center

Child Protection Team

Florida Agency for Health Care Administration

Continue reading "Florida Pediatrician Says Neglect Led to 12-Year-Old Miami-Dade Nursing Home Resident's Burn Injuries" »

Seven people suffered burn injuries in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Sunday following a deadly gas pump explosion at the BP station located at the intersection of Southwest 27th Avenue and Davie Boulevard. The blast happened after a 2008 Dodge pickup truck collided with a 1992 Buick before crashing into the pump. Following the explosion, the pickup truck and a nearby Toyota caught on fire.

One victim, Fort Lauderdale resident Ricardo Mottley, was admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami in critical condition. Another victim sustained moderated burn injuries, while five other victims sustained minor injuries. Pickup truck driver Roy Donald Link is one of the people that suffered minor burns.

While no criminal charges have been filed, some witnesses say that Link ran a red light before the crash.

2007 Burn Injury Facts from the American Burn Association:
• Some 4,000 people a year die from burn injuries.
• 3,500 of these fatalities occur in fires at residences.
• 500 burn deaths occur in aviation and motor vehicle rashes.
• Some 500,000 people receive medical care for burn injuries each year.

Kinds of Burns
First-Degree Burns: The top layer of skin has burns.
Second-Degree Burns: Involves the first two layers of skin.
Third-Degree Burns: Penetrates all layers of skin and causes permanent tissue damage.

Burn injuries can be serious injuries. If you or someone you love suffered burn injuries in a Florida accident that was someone else’s fault, it is important that you explore your legal options.

Man critically burned in gas pump fire, Miami Herald, October 7, 2008

Related Web Resources:
American Burn Association

Burn Emergencies, Phoenix.gov

Continue reading "Seven People Suffer Burn Injuries After Florida Motor Vehicle Crash Causes Deadly Gas Pump Fire at Ft. Lauderdale Station " »