NEW ORLEANS - A Florida man has filed a lawsuit claiming that he suffered injuries to his lumbar spine when he slipped in oil and fell while working aboard a vessel in the Gulf.
Geoffrey Zuniga filed suit against Art Catering Inc. on Nov. 7 in federal court in New Orleans.
The alleged incident occurred on Jan. 9, 2013 as Zuniga was performing his duties aboard the M/V Discoverer Deep Seas off the Louisiana Coast. Zuniga claims slipped and fell on oil in a walkway on the deck of the vessel. He claims that the accident caused him to suffer injuries to his lumbar spine.
The defendant is accused of negligence for failing to provide a safe place to work, failing to keep the walkways and passageways free and clear of slippery foreign substances, and for failing to warn of the presence of the slippery foreign substance in the walkway on the main deck.
The plaintiff is seeking an award of $5 million in damages for medical expenses, physical pain and suffering, mental pain and suffering, lost wages and loss of earning capacity, attorney’s fees, court costs, punitive damages, and interest.
Zuniga is represented by Evette E. Ungar, George W. Byrne, Jr. and Cheryl L. Wild of Ungar & Byrne in New Orleans.
U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo is assigned to the case.
Case No. 2:13-cv-06361
Florida man sues after slipping in oil on vessel
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