A lawsuit spurred by a catastrophic work injury — the electrocution death of a masonry worker applying exterior stucco to a building in 2009 — ended in a $93M verdict, according to a June 26, 2019 article posted on the Austin, Texas based KVUE.com.

According to the report, the jury in the workplace lawsuit came back with the decision against defendant Austin Energy and related entities for the unfortunate and untimely demise of Jaimie Membreno in February more than a decade ago.

The lethal work injury lawsuit was filed by Membreno’s son who alleged that overriding negligence largely allowed for the accident which killed his father to occur. On the purported day of the electrocution accident, Jaimie was in the process of spreading mixed stucco on the side of OK Corral Night Club.

As part of the process, he had to cut and adhere metal lathing, as indicated by KVUE.com. Metal lathing is used as intermediary base between the exterior façade or interior wall of a building and any plaster-type material, according to Britannica.com. While usually made of metal mesh, it doesn’t have to be and varieties are also available using wood, gypsum, and insulated board.

While cutting the lathing Membreno was holding, it came in contact with an uninsulated power line carrying 7,200 volts of electricity. The Texas county jury found that the electrical line ran dangerously close to the building façade and by doing so was in violation of the National Electric Safety Code (NESC).

The NESC stipulates there must be a distance of 7.5 horizontal feet between a power line and building sides for minimum safety, yet the electrical line which killed the masonry worker in question was closer by at least two feet.

The complainant’s electrical engineering expert claimed there was no evidence of pole inspection or maintenance of this or any electrical lines in a cohesive, systematic manner.

The defense spoke of a contrary reality in which poles and lines were regularly and diligently tended to, according to KVUE.com. In the end, the jury found that liability in the catastrophic work injury lawsuit should be shared. It attributed 34% to the construction company, 30% to the owner of OK Corral Night Club, 26% to Austin Energy and 10% to the late Membreno.

Is It The Volt or Current That Kills?

As many homeowners know, it is critical to turn off electricity to a house when you are working on an outlet or wired in lighting fixture, lest you injure yourself through shock. According to an Ohio State University post, while 10,000 volts might seem more lethal than 100—the deceased in this lawsuit was hit with close to the former amount—it isn’t necessarily so.

The intensity of a shock depends rather upon current—measured in amps—rather than volts. Currents above 10 milliamps will produce muscular contractions in the hands that are so severe the person involved will not be able to release the object which is the source of the shock, allowing for further damage.

Respirations can be quite difficult, as indicated by Ohio State, at 20 milliamps and come to a complete stop at 75 amps. Around 100 milliamps, the cardiac muscle goes into a state known as ventricular fibrillation. This status is an uncoordinated rhythm which is unproductive in supplying the body with needed oxygenated blood and the victim usually succumbs.

Workplace injuries aren’t uncommon and victims and their families may be able to hold employers and other entities responsible through litigation. A personal injury lawyer may offer the help that is needed.