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Tug Boat Crew

People who work aboard tugs are constantly subject to unique hazards in many diverse circumstances. The nature of the work – pulling or pushing around barges, disabled ships, rafts, and platforms twice as large in size or bigger –lends itself to higher risk for injury. If you were injured working on a tug boat, whether you were a crewmember thrown against a bulkhead in a tug and barge collision or a deckhand whose hand is crushed by a hatch cover during a voyage across the Pacific, you deserve to be compensated for your injury.

Many of these injuries can be prevented through proper training and safety techniques, and the lack of implementation of such measures usually denotes negligence on the part of the tug company. An experienced maritime injury attorney in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska can examine your tug boat injury claim to determine if negligence or unseaworthiness was involved and then help you bring a maritime civil case.

Attorneys for Tug Boat Injuries in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska

The maritime injury lawyers of Anderson Carey Williams & Neidzwski, LLP in Bellingham, Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco have decades of experience handling injury cases like yours. David B. Anderson is able to relate on a personal level to the intricacies involved in the tug industry due to the fact that he once owned and managed his own tug and barge company in Puget Sound. He understands the special risks involved when these powerful boats are required to propel and manipulate larger vessels.

If you have been injured in an accident on a tug, odds are that there was unseaworthy equipment or some form of negligence on the tug company’s part. Contact David B. Anderson and the maritime injury attorneys of Anderson Carey Williams & Neidzwski, LLP today. Your first consultation on how to begin fighting for the civil justice and compensation you deserve is free, so call 1 (800) 262-8529 today and schedule yours.

Tugboat Accident Information Center

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Tugboat Injuries and Causes

Tugs operated by negligent companies or manned by negligent workers increase the risk for injury. Injuries on tugs are often the result of failure to implement safety measures. Additionally, according to a study that analyzed U.S. Coast Guard statistics for the period of 1991-2001, nonfatal injuries on tugboats increase when visibility is poor, fatal accidents are more common when capsizing, and accidents with missing crewmembers increase in fire or lake accidents. Some of the more common accidents resulting in injury on tugboats include:

  • Toxic fume inhalation
  • Parting of tow lines
  • Working with heavy lines and shackles
  • Slip and fall or trip and fall on slippery and/or crowded decks
  • Falls from ladders
  • Falls overboard
  • Gangway accidents
  • Tow winch failure or other equipment failure
  • Crushing and/or squeezing accidents
  • Crew fatigue and/or inadequate crew
  • Crew negligence
  • Collisions
  • Fires

These are serious accidents that result in serious injuries that can completely disable a tugboat crewmember or officer temporarily or permanently. When negligence or unseaworthiness is the cause, an experienced Bellingham, Seattle, Portland, or San Francisco maritime injury attorney can help you seek maximum damages for your injury. Some of the injuries seen in crewmembers and officers on tugboats due to negligence of the tug company or crew include:

  • Lacerations
  • Broken bones
  • Burns
  • Hernia
  • Loss of limb
  • Amputation of fingers or toes
  • Back injury
  • Head injury
  • Neck injury
  • Brain injury
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Hypothermia or drowning

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Recoverable Damages from Tug Boat Injuries in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska

Injuries that occur due to the negligence of the tug boat company or its crewmembers are covered under the Jones Act, which provides civil recompense for seaman when injured as a result of employer negligence. If you have suffered a tug boat injury due to negligence, you may be able to pursue the following damages with your maritime injury lawyer in addition to your required maintenance and cure payments:

  • Medical expenses
  • Future medical expenses
  • Rehabilitation
  • Lost wages
  • Reduced earning capacity
  • Vocational retraining cost
  • Disability
  • Disfigurement
  • Pain and suffering
  • General damages

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Anderson Carey Williams & Neidzwski, LLP | Maritime Injury Attorneys for Tug Employees

Don’t accept just your maintenance and cure and a small settlement if you have been injured aboard a tugboat. An experienced maritime injury attorney can review your payments and determine if you are receiving fair compensation or if a maritime civil case should be pursued. The maritime injury attorneys of Anderson Carey Williams & Neidzwski, LLP have personal experience with the tug industry and will fight for maximum recoverable damages in your tug boat injury case in the North Pacific, Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Puget Sound, or Inside Passage. With offices in Seattle, Bellingham, Portland, and San Francisco, our attorneys represent injured seaman in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska. For your free consultation, call Anderson Carey Williams & Neidzwski, LLP today at 1 (800) 262-8529.

This article was last updated on Friday, September 14, 2018.

  • The Maritime Law Association of The United States
    The Maritime Law Association of the United States (MLA) was founded in 1899. Its formation was prompted by the organization, some three years earlier, of the International Maritime Committee.
  • Washington State Bar Association
    The Washington State Bar Association operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's nearly 40,000 lawyers and other legal professionals.
  • Oregon State Bar
    The Oregon State Bar is a government agency in the U.S. state of Oregon. Founded in 1890 as the private Oregon Bar Association, it became a public entity in 1935 that regulates the legal profession.
  • Alaska Bar Association
    The Alaska Bar Association is a mandatory bar association responsible to the Alaska Supreme Court for the admission and discipline process of attorneys for the State of Alaska.