Victims Receive $5 Million for Mining Accident
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Personal Injury attorneys Howard Krepack and Gary Stern recently won a $5 million settlement for two victims of a catastrophic mining accident. The employees, both in their 40s, were clearing large rocks stuck in a "jaw crusher," a unit 10-15 feet above the ground fed by a conveyor belt. The workers planned to remove the rocks by attaching one end of a strap to the rocks and the other end to a 2,780-pound bucket attached to an excavator by a hydraulic coupler. The bucket, however, fell off of the coupler and into the crusher, striking both plaintiffs and causing brain injuries and other serious and permanent injuries. Attorneys Krepack and Stern proved that the accident was caused by a defect in the hydraulic coupler.

Workers' Compensation attorney Sherry Grant also obtained a 100% permanent disability award and lifetime medical care for one of the injured miners. The other miner's case is still pending. "Our firm is one of very few that handles both Personal Injury and Workers' Compensation cases under one roof. This enables us to coordinate legal strategies and obtain the maximum benefits for our clients," Grant said.