Gas Explosion in Bend Critically Injures Resident

Date:  April 19, 2011
Location:  337 ½ NW Georgia Avenue, Bend
Names:  Michael Flint, Dan and Martha Mahoney

A loose connection to a furnace’s natural gas line is believed to have caused the explosion that critically injured a Bend man early Thursday morning. The blast occurred when the man, who was a tenant in the cottage, lit a cigarette.

Just before 4 a.m. Thursday, Deschutes County 911 dispatchers received at least 15 calls to report the explosion at 337 ½ NW Georgia Avenue. The cottage in which the blast happened was behind the main residence. Deputy Fire Marshal Susie Maniscalco told KTVZ.com that evidence indicated the connection of the furnace to the natural gas line was not tight enough, allowing gas to leak into the cottage.

Records show Dan and Martha Mahoney own the cottage. The injured man was identified as Michael Flint. He was initially taken to St. Charles Medical Center-Bend, then flown to the burn center at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center, where he remains in a critical condition. The cottage was virtually destroyed and two adjacent houses were also damaged as the fire spread.

We would like to wish Michael Flint a full recovery from his injuries after this horrifying accident.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions.

Common types of premises liability cases include:
Slip and Fall:
Example: A store owner fails to mop up a wet floor, or provide proper traction, and a person slips and falls as a result.

Inadequate Maintenance:
Example: A hotel owner fails to maintain the premises, like when a falling tree branch injures a passerby because it has not been properly trimmed.

Defective Conditions:
Example: A property owner fails to repair or warn the public about a dangerous condition in the area, such as a broken staircase.

Inadequate Security.
Example: A parking structure company fails to install adequate lighting or warn patrons about dangerous criminal activity taking place on the premises.

If you have received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and allow you to begin recovery.

Robbery at Ruby Tuesday May Have Been Preventable

Date:  April 5, 2012
Location:  Ruby Tuesday Restaurant, NE Highway 99, McMinnville
Names:  Saul Jorge Ayala, Jose Primitibo Ayala

A young woman restaurant employee was assaulted by two men when the Ruby Tuesday in McMinnville was robbed last Sunday night. The female employee had been left to close up and was alone in the restaurant when two men with guns assaulted her, robbed the restaurant and stole the employee’s car.

According to the report on KGW.com, two men were arrested on Thursday in connection with the robbery. Police also said they are looking for a third suspect. Saul Ayala, 24, was an employee of the Ruby Tuesday restaurant but was not working on the night of the robbery. He was arrested with his brother, Jose Ayala, 20.

McMinnville police say the brothers face multiple charges, including robbery, burglary, assault, attempted kidnapping, theft and unlawful use of a vehicle. They also said the female employee who was assaulted is expected to make a full recovery from her injuries.

We would like to send our best wishes for a full and speedy recovery to the unfortunate employee after her frightening ordeal.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions. And, in this case, Ruby Tuesday may have been negligent in allowing an employee to lock up alone, depending on the area.

Common types of premises liability cases include:
Slip and Fall:
Example: A store owner fails to mop up a wet floor, or provide proper traction, and a person slips and falls as a result.

Inadequate Maintenance:
Example: A hotel owner fails to maintain the premises, like when a falling tree branch injures a passerby because it has not been properly trimmed.

Defective Conditions:
Example: A property owner fails to repair or warn the public about a dangerous condition in the area, such as a broken staircase.

Inadequate Security:
Example: A parking structure company fails to install adequate lighting or warn patrons about dangerous criminal activity taking place on the premises.

If you have received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and allow you to begin recovery.

Child Injured in Unprovoked Rose Garden Attack

Date:  March 24, 2012
Location:  The Rose Garden, Portland
Name:  Markell Parks

A 14-year-old boy was knocked unconscious in an unprovoked attack at the Rose Garden Saturday night. In spite of the large crowds, witnesses say no security personnel were in the area, and the assailant managed to escape on foot. He remains at large.

Markell Parks, 14, and his younger brother Jathan, were waiting for their uncle outside the men’s restroom at the conclusion of the Moto Cross show. The report on KATU.com says while the boys were waiting, an unidentified man about 6-feet tall and weighing an estimated 220 pounds simply walked up to Markell, punched him in the face and knocked him out.

Markell’s mother, Jessica, got a phone call and rushed to the hospital to meet her son. She’s angry the man got away. She said that because of the lack of a security presence, the man who hit her son literally walked out of the Rose Garden and got away.

Markell suffered a concussion, swelling around the face, a cut lip and recurring headaches from the attack. Rose Garden directors of security were refusing to comment on the incident on Monday.

We would like to wish young Markell Parks a full and speedy recovery after this traumatic and unprovoked attack.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions.

Common types of premises liability cases include:
Slip and Fall:

Example: A store owner fails to mop up a wet floor, or provide proper traction, and a person slips and falls as a result.

Inadequate Security.

Example: A parking structure company fails to install adequate lighting or warn patrons about dangerous criminal activity taking place on the premises.

If you or a member of your family have received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and allow you to begin recovery.

When a child gets hurt, it can be a parent’s worst nightmare. Children are extremely vulnerable because their bodies are still growing, and they are not always aware of the dangers around them.

If your child has been hurt or through someone else’s negligence, you might want to consider legal action through an experienced Portland child injury lawyer. Besides ensuring that your child has the financial resources to recover medically, a child injury case can also help to ensure that other children are not harmed through continued negligence.

SW Jefferson St. Tree Injured Portland Woman Walking By

Date: March 21, 2012
Location: Southwest Jefferson Street, Portland
Name:  Sabrina Vanriette

 A Portland woman is in fair condition at OHSU Hospital after being struck by the branches of a massive tree that fell down on Southwest Jefferson Street Wednesday afternoon. The tree also took out at least four windows of the church tower at St. James Lutheran Church. Some of the windows date back to 1907.

The report in KATU.com said Sabrina Vanriette, 52, was walking on the sidewalk near the church at about 4:40 p.m., when the tree simply fell over, and the branches crashed down all around her. Portland Fire and Rescue spokesman Paul Corah said Vanriette was examined by emergency responders called to the scene and then taken to OHSU Hospital, where she is listed in fair condition. Vanriette’s brother said she suffered a broken collarbone and is lucky to be alive.

The tree that fell appeared to be either a large elm or oak tree, more than three feet in diameter, about 75 feet tall and probably about 100 years old.

We would like to wish Sabrina Vanriette a full recovery after her frightening ordeal, and we hope she is out of the hospital soon.

If a city, state, county, or other public body is being sued, a Tort Claim Notice must be received by the entity being sued within 180 days of the injury. Don’t miss this deadline! ORS 30.275 contains the details. If you cannot figure them out by yourself, please call us. We are happy to help.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions.

Common types of premises liability cases include inadequate maintenance; for example when the property owner—in this case the City of Portland–fails to maintain a premises, like when a falling tree branch injures a passerby because it has not been properly trimmed.

If you have received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and allow you to begin recovery.

Man Fell into Corrosive Chemical Tank and Died on Swan Island

Date:  February 19, 2012

Location:  6000 block of Basin Avenue, Swan Island Industrial Site

Name:  John Michael Summers

Portland Fire and Rescue performed the grim and dangerous job of recovering a man’s body from a tank of toxic and corrosive chemicals Sunday. The tank was on the D/B Boaz barge located at an industrial site on Swan Island, alongside the Willamette River.

John Michael Summers, 57, of Pe ell, Washington, was standing near an open hatch which led into a 40-foot by 50-foot tank  that was filled to a depth of 12 feet with a liquid chemical called Lignin Amine. When a co-worker turned away, then turned back, Summers had disappeared and the alarm was raised. Officials now believe Summers leaned down to open the hatch, passed out from the fumes and fell in. Lignin Amine sucks oxygen out of the air; there was less than a one percent concentration of oxygen at the surface of the tank, and anyone falling in would have been unconscious in a matter of seconds.

Rescue crews were called and used a camera to confirm Summers’ body was in the tank, which was then drained. It took crews about 45 minutes to then enter the tank and recover the body, according to the report on KOIN Local 6. Officials were unable to say whether or not Summers was wearing any safety equipment but said it was a situation which called for precautions to be in place.

We would like to extend our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of John Summers at this tragic time.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions.

Common types of premises liability cases include:

Slip and Fall:
Example: A store owner fails to mop up a wet floor, or provide proper traction, and a person slips and falls as a result.

Inadequate Maintenance:
Example: A hotel owner fails to maintain the premises, like when a falling tree branch injures a passerby because it has not been properly trimmed.

Defective Conditions:
Example: A property owner fails to repair or warn the public about a dangerous condition in the area, such as a broken staircase.

Inadequate Security.
Example: A parking structure company fails to install adequate lighting or warn patrons about dangerous criminal activity taking place on the premises.

If you or a family member have received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and allow you to begin recovery.

Wilsonville Teacher Died from Injuries Sustained in Classroom Fall

Date:  February 7, 2012
Location:  Inza R. Wood Middle School, Wilsonville
Name:  Susan Asher

A seventh grade social studies teacher from Wilsonville has died from her injuries after falling in her classroom last Thursday. Students and parents were informed Tuesday morning.

According to the report in The Oregonian, Susan Asher was hospitalized last Thursday after a fall. Staff members tried to help her, but the yearbook teacher had suffered traumatic injuries, and an ambulance transported her to a local hospital. Her family had told the school’s principal, Barb Soisson, that they had seen hopeful signs of a recovery over the past five days, but sadly, Asher died from her injuries Tuesday.

We send our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Susan Asher at this horrible time.

In Oregon, property owners are responsible for making certain their property is maintained safely, without any unreasonable dangers. Despite laws intended to protect people, many accidents still occur due to dangerous conditions.

Common types of premises liability cases with examples:
Slip and Fall: A store owner fails to mop up a wet floor, or provide proper traction, and a person slips and falls as a result.
Inadequate Maintenance: A hotel owner fails to maintain the premises, like when a falling tree branch injures a passerby because it has not been properly trimmed.
Defective Conditions: A property owner fails to repair or warn the public about a dangerous condition in the area, such as a broken staircase.
Inadequate Security: A parking structure company fails to install adequate lighting or warn patrons about dangerous criminal activity taking place on the premises.

If you or a member of your family has received injuries due to negligence by a property owner, contact a premises liability lawyer in Oregon to help you investigate, handle your case, and advise you of your options.