Worker receives shock when crane touches overhead wire

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Employed by a crane company, the plaintiff was acting as a spotter as his co-worker lowered the roof of a shed with a crane. The area where the work was happening was surrounded by electrical wires.

The plaintiff’s employer requested that the property owner take down lines to provide safer access while the cranes were in use. The lines were required to be de-energized because lowering sheds and roofs off a flatbed truck by crane in a field of overhead electrical wires is not an exact science; it was very easy for a wire to be contacted as the crane was operating. In response, the property owner supposedly de-energized the power lines in the area (a sign in the area where the accident occurred clearly stated the lines were de-energized).

During a pre-work safety meeting, an employee of the contractor also informed the plaintiff’s crew that the lines surrounding the work area had been de-energized, when they, in fact, were not.

During one of the roof placements, the plaintiff was on a fiberglass ladder leaning against a shed to navigate the roof and provide instructions while his co-worker lowered it with the crane. A portion of the crane inadvertently struck an energized overhead wire. The plaintiff immediately felt a shock and pain in his left wrist and hand.

After the plaintiff was injured, a representative of the contractor finally contacted the property owner, who inspected the lines, found that they were energized, and de-energized them within minutes.

After an extensive work-up, the plaintiff was ultimately diagnosed with a non-healing left distal radius bone contusion with nerve damage. He eventually underwent arthroscopic repair of his wrist, but the procedure did not alleviate his nerve pain.

Due to the fact he has to take Gabapentin, the plaintiff was forced to give up his license as a crane operator and had to find a new line of employment. His special damages totaled approximately $365,000.

After the case was put into suit, the parties agreed to mediation before discovery. The defendants were expected to contest the extent of the plaintiff’s injury and to present evidence that he was fully able to work.

After a mediation, the parties eventually resolved the case through continued negotiations.

Action: Negligence and tort
Injuries alleged: Left wrist bone contusion, traumatic peripheral nerve injury
Case name: Withheld
Court/case no.: Withheld
Jury and/or judge: N/A (settled after mediation)
Name of mediator: Francis Ford
Amount: $900,000
Special damages: $365,000
Date: October 2024
Attorney: David P. McCormack of Sugarman & Sugarman, Boston (for the plaintiff)