Altoona Personal Injury Blog

Man will spend at least 6 years in jail after fatal crash

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in car accidents on Thursday, February 14, 2019.

A man who caused a fatal accident in a Pennsylvania town about 45 miles from Altoona will spend at least 6 years and up to 15 years in prison for his role in the crash. After the accident, police determined that the man was high on methamphetamine and a prescription medicine at the time of the collision.

According to reports, the man was operating a Jeep and had his young daughter in the vehicle with him. The man, without warning, or apparent explanation, drove his car in to oncoming traffic while on a state road. He struck two classic cars, both of which were occupied by two people. The group had recently attended a car show together.

Do you know all the workplace hazards that threaten your safety?

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith on Thursday, February 14, 2019.

How many safety hazards do you face at your workplace every day? Regardless of the industry in which you earn your income in Pennsylvania, some injury risks are sure to exist. While some hazards are unique to specific sectors, others pose risks in all environments, from offices to construction sites.

An occupational hazard is anything in your workplace that could cause you or your co-workers mental or bodily harm, not excluding occupational illnesses. If you learn more about the potential dangers in your workplace, you might be better able to take precautions. Safety authorities divide potential occupational hazards into four general categories.

What are the most dangerous jobs?

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in workplace accidents on Friday, February 1, 2019.

While every Altoona, Pennsylvania, worker faces some risk at her job, there are no doubt some professions that are more dangerous than others.

However, the answer to the question which jobs are most dangerous might not be the one Pennsylvania residents would expect.

How can the federal rest rules help in fatigued driver case?

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in truck accidents on Friday, January 18, 2019.

A previous post on this blog talked about how important it is for truck drivers to operate their vehicles alert and on a good night's rest.

When truckers try to push through their tiredness to get their delivery done faster, perhaps because they are looking for a bonus or are under pressure from their employers, they run the risk of making serious errors due to their fatigue and causing severe truck accidents.

Disability: Workers' comp is the light at the end of the tunnel

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith on Friday, January 18, 2019.

It is not rare occurrences for workers in varies industries to suffer on-the-job injuries that leave them with permanent disabilities. A significant number of Pennsylvania workers seek financial support through the state-regulated workers' compensation insurance system each year for disabilities that prevent their return to previous jobs. The program offers benefits that will replace a percentage of the lost wages during the time that a work-related disability prevents you from working.

The workers' compensation program pays all the medical expenses for job-related injuries immediately. Injuries with lasting consequences form four different categories and payment procedures. It pays benefits for temporary disability after three to seven days, and if your injury causes permanent partial or total disability, long-term benefits will apply.

UV rays of the winter sun pose hidden skin cancer hazards

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith on Thursday, January 17, 2019.

If you are a construction worker who spends time outdoors while earning your living in the harsh Pennsylvania winter, you might not realize that even the rays of the winter sun could cause skin cancer. Although the weather is warmer in the summer, and you can feel the sun burning on your skin, the hazard remains throughout all seasons. The fact that you spend more time layering enough clothes to keep warm in the cold should not prevent you from wearing an essential item of personal protective equipment -- sunscreen.

It is a myth that the rays of the sun are harmless in the winter. When the earth tilts away from the sun in the winter, the wavelengths of UV rays are slightly shorter than in the summer, but it does not remove the danger they pose. If you do your job at a high altitude, you will be at a higher risk.

A driver can still be intoxicated and under .08 BAC

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in car accidents on Friday, January 4, 2019.

Like the vast majority of its sister states, Pennsylvania uses .08 blood alcohol content, or BAC, as its legal limit for the purpose of deciding whether a driver can face criminal drunk driving charges.

In other words, if a police officer can validly establish that a driver had .08 or more BAC, then it is relatively easy to prosecute criminal charges against that driver, that is, as opposed to a driver who blew under .08 BAC.

Will more people on the road mean more accidents?

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in car accidents on Friday, December 21, 2018.

Not surprisingly, this time of year is a popular time to travel, which means the roads in and around Altoona, Pennsylvania, are going to be particularly crowded.

In fact, one group, the American Automobile Association, commonly known as AAA, is estimating that this year will be a record year for holiday travel, at least since 2001, when the AAA began keeping track of this statistic.

Don't lose sleep over a drowsy driving accident

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith on Thursday, December 20, 2018.

You are a safe driver, and you are proud of that. Unfortunately, no amount of defensive driving can protect you from those who do not take their responsibility behind the wheel as seriously as you do. Many Pennsylvania drivers may not even realize they are putting others in danger when they get behind the wheel while tired, but drowsy driving is a real and dangerous problem.

If a fatigued driver recently hit you, you understand just how devastating these injuries can be. You might have missed work and racked up significant medical bills along the way. Unfortunately, you are not alone in this journey. Here are a few facts about the dangers and prevalence of drowsy driving.

Interstate 99 accident kills 2

On behalf of Goldstein, Heslop, Steele, Clapper, Oswalt & Smith posted in car accidents on Friday, December 7, 2018.

An accident on Interstate 99 near Altoona left two people dead and one other person critically injured. Two other people were also taken to the hospital in what police described as guarded condition, but they indicated that they thought the two women would survive the accident.

The accident involved a mini-van that police believe may have been travelling too fast for the conditions, although police indicated that they did not think there was ice on the road.

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