NEW ORLEANS - After slipping and falling down a flight of steps causing a serious back injury, a seaman has filed a lawsuit against his employer for $1.25 million claiming that the steps needed a non-skid surface.
Louis Davis filed suit against Nexen Petroleum USA, Kevin Gros Consulting & Marine Services Inc. and Emily Gros Offshore on April 25 in federal court in New Orleans.
The alleged incident occurred on Sept. 24, 2011 while Davis was employed as a catering hand by Taylor International Services Inc. and was assigned to the jack-up Nexen 321 located in the Gulf of Mexico off the Louisiana coast.
Shortly after being transported by personnel basket, Davis slipped and fell down a flight of steps on the jack-up. He sustained injuries to his cervical and lumbar spine.
The defendants are accused of negligence for failing to keep and maintain the stairway in a reasonably safe condition, failing to keep the stairway free of slippery, foreign substances, failing to keep and maintain an adequate non-skid surface on the stairway, and failing to keep the personnel basket free of slippery foreign substances.
The plaintiff is asking the Court for an award of $1.25 million in damages, plus interest and court costs.
Davis is represented by George W. Byrne Jr., Evette E. Ungar, and Cheryl L. Wild of Ungar & Byrne in New Orleans.
U.S. District Judge Jay C. Zainey is assigned to the case.
Case No. 2:12-cv-01053
Seaman sues after falling down flight of stairs
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