PA Maritime Accident Lawyers
Boating Accidents & Other Maritime Accidents
Spending the day on the water whether it is on a sailboat, fishing boat, speed boat, kayak, sightseeing tour, or Jet Ski can be an immensely enjoyable activity. All too often, however, a relaxing fun day can turn into your worst nightmare.
Boat accidents cause hundreds of deaths and even more injuries every year. In 2009, the Coast Guard reported over 700 fatalities related to boating accidents, and 42 deaths related to other personal watercraft accidents. Fatalities are most often due to drowning and other submersion injuries.
Boat Accident Injury Causes
Factors that may cause boating accidents include operator inattention, operator inexperience, excessive speed, alcohol impairment, power failures, improper lighting, ineffective drainage and pump systems, failure to maintain safety and communication equipment, lack of proper training of boating safety instruction, defective equipment, or fire and explosion due to problems with fuel systems.
Many people who operate boats, jet skis, and other watercraft do not have the proper instruction, safety knowledge, and safety equipment they need to prevent tragic accidents. Businesses often rent wave runners, speed boats, jet skis, Tigersharks, and other personal watercraft to people who have not undergone necessary training and licensing to operate these types of watercraft. Non-motorized watercraft like kayaks, canoes, row boats, and sail boats can also pose hazards to inexperienced operators, causing serious injuries, and even wrongful death.
Types of Water-Related Injuries
Boating and other personal watercraft accidents can lead catastrophic injuries such as hypothermia, traumatic brain injury, permanent scarring, internal organ injury, paralysis, spinal cord injury, and wrongful death. Many other types of serious injuries can occur during a day out on the water. Spending long hours in the hot sun can lead to heat stroke and severe sun burns. Boat engines can produce large amounts of carbon monoxide emissions, which are toxic to people.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured, you need an attorney with boating knowledge and expertise, as well as experience with your type of case. Our Pennsylvania boating accident attorneys at Reiff & Bily have decades of experience with boating and boating-related accidents, and can determine where proper liability lies to recover financial compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost wages you may experience if faced with a serious or catastrophic boating injury.
