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We at The Injury Lawyers write numerous blogs daily, covering an array of stories we find related to personal injury, and of course providing you with the useful information you need when asking the key questions about personal injury claims. As a daily writer, I come across some very unusual stories in the press. And this is another example of an out of the ordinary case of potential negligence that, as a male, is a very concerning to read…

According to sources from The Independent (source), an investigation is underway after a police officer accidentally discharged a Taser weapon in to a man’s groin! How this has happened, I don’t know! The 50,000 volt weapon narrowly missed 46 year old Peter Cox’s genitals after the officer appeared to have inadvertently fired the weapon whilst lowering it. A shocking story – with absolutely no pun intended at all!

Mr Cox has since sought legal advice (and rightly so) after he was pulled over by the officer on suspicion of driving the BMW he was in without insurance. Mr Cox, as any law abiding citizen would, pulled the vehicle to the side of the road near a friend’s house after noticing he was being followed by the patrol car. The officer proceeded to exit the police vehicle and aim the weapon towards him. The officer reportedly pointed the weapon at him for just a few seconds before lowering it and discharging the weapon, hitting his groin and ankle. He subsequently fell to the ground in agony and was later treated by paramedics at the scene.
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Sources from the Telegraph have today confirmed the outcome of the Buncefield explosion on December 11^th 2005, labelled as the biggest European peacetime explosion. For those of you that are not familiar with this event – an explosion was caused after petrol vapour leaked from a tanker in the early hours of a Sunday morning back in 2005; an explosion that remarkably measured 2.4 on the Richter scale, and was heard over 125 miles away.

The five companies involved have each received fines equating to more than £9million; a figure that has been condemned by local MP’s and campaigners as too lenient given the scale of the disaster. The judge in the case at St Albans Crown Court, Judge Sir David Calvert-Smith, has stated ”Had the explosion happened during a working day, the loss of life may have been measured in tens or even hundreds”, according to the source. And it’s certainly a miracle – or perhaps sheer luck – that no one was seriously hurt given the scale of the explosion. In fact, the judge went on to say that the fact the incident occurred so early in the morning with no significant casualties “was little short of miraculous”. The environmental impact could reportedly remain for decades.
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Motorcycle accident victims can end up in a seriously bad way – many, are sadly fatal. But those who do survive often do so with permanent and life altering injuries; I suppose the worst would be a coma if the victim does survive the injuries.

This story is truly remarkable, and a bit of a miracle as well. According to Sky news (source), a motorcycle accident victim “pleaded to live” just before his life support was about to be switched off by blinking and moving his eyes…

Forty-three year old Richard Rudd was left paralysed after falling in to an irreversible coma following a crash leaving him with serious life altering brain injuries. His family made the tough decision that the father of two would not want to continue living in his condition, and gave doctors permission to withdraw his treatment. But moments before the decision was to be followed through, Richard was caught on camera signalling his will to live whilst a television documentary was being filmed, covering patients with severe brain injuries.
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With the long, and seemingly never ending, recession, increased petrol prices and running costs for cars, and the greener view of our planet, it’s not surprising that there seem to be more bicycles on the roads. But bicycles are slow and hard to spot, and drivers can be impatient! So bicycle accidents do of course happen; and just with motorcycle accidents, the injuries the victims can sustain can be quite awful – and claims for compensation can be made.

But on occasions when I review the recent news in search of ideas for my next article, I find a story that can only be described as out of the ordinary. So here’s one – of an unusual cycle incident that could warrant a claim for compensation – but it’s certainly no accident we’re looking at here!
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Sky and BBC news have recently published reports regarding an elderly woman who sustained injuries when a cleaning product exploded in her face.

Grandmother, Sheila Insch, was in the process of unblocking her drain using a product called ‘Dr Drain’ at her home in Hampshire when the product suddenly exploded causing the substance to splash all over her face. Mrs. Insch was rushed to Southampton General Hospital by her daughter where she received treatment for facial burns. However, Doctors have stated that she was lucky not to lose her eyesight and it was only the instinctive reaction of closing her eyes that prevented this.

Mrs. Insch said she experienced extreme pain and has issued a warning to others using similar products and has confirmed that she followed the instructions provided with the product in full. She said “I read the instructions and put two drops in. It started to bubble so I turned round to see what was happening and it exploded. It hit the ceiling and went straight into my face. I just grabbed something to wipe my face and I kept washing my face all the way to hospital. It was terribly painful, burning, it hurt“. Her daughter also described her horror and anguish stating “There’s nothing you could say to actually describe seeing your mother’s face melting in front of you“.
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Road traffic accidents are a part of everyday life; particular for us at The Injury Lawyers, dealing with countless road accident claims on a day to day basis. Unfortunately, drivers can often be negligent and accidents occur; and a claim can be brought against them. But when an accident is caused because of the drivers’ selfishness and recklessness, it’s an altogether different story.

According to sources from The Sun (source), a “maniac” driver who stole a car and killed a 70 year old pensioner by driving on to a pavement to avoid a police box manoeuvre as he was being chased by officers has been given an 11 year jail sentence for his criminal act. In my opinion, this is hardly a punishment that fits the crime, if I am to be perfectly honest.
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A story reported yesterday (30th June 2010) on the BBC News Website (source) about a young girl who has been crushed to death by an electrical gate in Manchester.

The 6 year old girl, named as Miss Semelia Campbell became trapped between a brick post and the wrought iron gate at around 7.30pm on Monday on the Lowry Estate in Moss Side, Manchester. Her Mother, Ms Judith Gilroy, watched on helplessly after the key fob she had failed to stop the gate moving and, although she also later switched off the electricity, she was unable to save her.

A police officer who rushed to the scene eventually managed to pull her out after he smashed the motor but she had already gone into cardiac arrest. She was rushed to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital but tragically she died a short time later.
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The parents of two year old twins have begun legal action against a petting farm after their children became seriously ill from contracting E.coli from Godstone Farm, Surrey, in August 2009 – and they are seeking compensation for personal injury.The incident was reported last year, with the twins being just 2 victims of a total of 93 who became infected after the outbreak at Godstone last year. 76 where children under the age of ten.

The twins, Aaron and Todd Mock, who were infected after visiting the petting farm on a school trip, were 2 of the most seriously affected, and had to spend weeks in hospital after suffering from kidney failure.

The legal action against the farm follows the release of a report into the outbreak which revealed that the Health Protection Agency (HPA) failed to take appropriate action to reduce and contain the outbreak. This failure and the lack of action by the HPA lead to the farm remaining open throughout the bank holiday weekend, during which they had over 5000 visitors, despite the fact that they were aware of a number of cases of the bug.
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Police in Edinburgh are appealing for witnesses after an accident on 15^th June in which a female cyclist was left with multiple injuries after being hit by a driver who failed to stop and fled the scene.

The accident happened at approximately 8.30am on Dalmeny Street, Edinburgh and a number of people stopped to assist the woman. Police have so far interviewed a number of witnesses but as yet have been unable to obtain enough information to allow them to trace the driver who was believed to have been driving a greyish-blue car.

A Sergeant with Edinburgh Police released a statement asking for any further witnesses to come forward to assist them with getting to the bottom of what happened. He also stated that “of course we want to speak to the driver of the car who we urge to make himself known to the police. If the driver has done nothing wrong and was just on their way to work or school we will get to the bottom of it. They may not even have realised they were involved”. (source)
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A 78 year old man has died after being trampled to death by a herd of cows at Hopping Farm in Middleton-by-Youlgreave.

It is understood that the man, named as Mr. Timothy Stephenson, was out walking his pet Labrador through the fields when the tragedy struck and he was later found by a rambler with multiple injuries and still surrounded by the cows. Mr. Stephenson was still alive when found and was rushed to Stoke-on-Trent hospital for treatment, however he did not recover and he died the next day from his injuries.

Mr. Stephenson told the rambler who found him that his dog had spooked the herd causing them to turn aggressive and charge. He tried to get away but it is believed that he tripped and a wall prevented him from escaping.

This tragic accident has led to safety experts making a public warning of the potential risk of cows and other farm animals to members of the public, particularly those walking with dogs.
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