Eagle Ford Shale - located between the Texas-Mexico border in Webb and Maverick counties East Texas - has created many jobs and a large amount of revenue. The 400-mile stretch of shale is continuing to expand and produce fruitful resources.
However, while working diligently to produce the prospective output of 420,000 each day at the Eagle Ford Shale, every single worker faces extreme dangers.
One such worker was killed at the BHP Billiton Petroleum construction site in Karnes County.
His name was James Dean "Jimmy" Burnett. Burnett worked for Jet Maintenance Inc., a Victoria-based oil field service company. He was 25 years old and tragically died in an accident when a pipe fell on him. The pipe struck him in the head and neck, causing fatal injuries.
The incident was reported to happen about 10 a.m. Emergency responders were called to the scene, administered CPR, and attempted to save Burnett's life. However, despite vigorous attempts, Burnett was declared dead at the scene.
After the accident, the BHP Petroleum website issued a statement saying, "operations at the site were immediately stopped and a full investigation was started. Our immediate thoughts and condolences are with the family, friends and colleagues of the deceased." The company ceased construction at the site Burnett was working on, but production and drilling operations continued.
Burnett is not the first employee to suffer fatal injuries in Eagle Ford Shale counties. In fact, according to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), since 2009, at least 11 other employees have died in worksite accidents.
Many injuries occur on construction sites. These injuries occur in both men and women and often because the work sites involve people working from dangerous heights with heavy machinery and objects. These injuries can occur not only to the people working on the sites, but unlucky bystanders next to the sites.
When these accidents occur, the construction worker's company, contractors, construction managers, or site foreman may be liable for the injuries incurred.
As in Burnett's case, these injuries can often be so severe that death is imminent. Proper protocol and safety instructions should be implemented to reduce the risk of an accident occurring on all construction sites.
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