FELA claims: Amputation due to railroad injury

Federal Railroad Administration safety reports have documented amputations among railroad workers for years. Early safety data recorded leg, foot, arm, and hand amputations among on-duty employee injuries. A recent review covering three years showed these amputations continue happening, confirming that limb loss remains a real risk in railroad operations.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, during 1992 through 1999, there were more than 11,000 nonfatal workplace amputations annually. Across that eight-year period, there were 171 fatal amputations and nearly 88,500 nonfatal amputations overall, highlighting the severity and prevalence of this type of injury when industrial accidents occur. Although this data is not specific to railroads alone, transportation and warehousing, the category into which railroad work generally falls, accounts for a portion of these incidents.

Common ways amputations happen in railroad work

Amputations typically result from traumatic, high-force accidents involving heavy equipment and moving railcars. Railroad workers face amputation risk during switching and coupling tasks when limbs get caught or trapped between cars. The weight and force of rolling stock can crush limbs so severely that surgical amputation becomes necessary to save the worker's life.

Machinery entanglement or maintenance errors on track equipment or yard machinery create situations where hands, arms, feet, or legs become caught in moving parts. Workers servicing brake systems, performing repairs on tie wagons, or maintaining other rail equipment can suffer catastrophic injuries when machinery activates unexpectedly or when proper lockout procedures are not followed.

Derailments or collisions create crushing or shearing forces that can sever limbs on the spot or damage tissue so badly that amputation becomes necessary during emergency treatment. Workers may lose limbs immediately at the scene or later when doctors determine the limb can't be saved.

Amputation injuries qualify for FELA claims

FELA protects railroad employees injured on the job when railroad negligence played any role in the injury. Physical injuries commonly seen in FELA cases include fractures, burns, crush injuries, amputations, disfigurement, permanent disability, and traumatic brain injury. Amputation clearly falls within this scope as a severe injury that changes a worker's life and earning capacity.

Under FELA, workers don't have to prove negligence was the only cause. Showing it played any role, however minor, in the accident or unsafe condition is enough. This gives FELA strength for severe injuries like amputations. Common negligence contributing to amputation includes broken or poorly maintained equipment, insufficient training on safe coupling and switching, not enforcing lockout and tagout protocols during maintenance, inadequate yard communication, and permitting unsafe conditions.

Damages available for amputation injuries under FELA

When a railroad accident involving employer negligence leads to amputation, FELA damages can include:

• Lifetime medical care costs, including prosthetics and rehabilitation
• Lost wages and future earnings
• Pain and suffering and disability compensation
• Loss of quality of life

Modern prosthetic limbs demand periodic replacement and calibration over the years. Physical therapy helps workers adapt to prosthetic devices and find new ways to handle daily tasks. Home and vehicle modifications may be needed to accommodate mobility challenges. FELA covers all these costs when railroad negligence contributed to the amputation.

Real-world FELA amputation settlements

Reported case outcomes provide context on how severe injuries like amputations are treated in FELA litigation. In a notable FELA settlement, a railroad worker who suffered a crush injury that eventually led to a below-knee amputation reached a multi-million-dollar settlement after proving that the railroad's negligence contributed to the accident and subsequent amputation decision.

This outcome shows that catastrophic limb loss remains a valid and serious FELA claim even when the final surgical amputation happens years after the initial injury, as long as it's reasonably connected to the workplace incident. Workers' compensation systems cap benefits through fixed schedules, but FELA allows workers to recover full damages that actually reflect what it costs to live with limb loss.

Qualifying for a FELA amputation claim

For a railroad amputation FELA claim to move forward successfully, the injury must have happened during employment while performing job duties. They need proof that railroad negligence played a role, such as hazardous equipment, lack of training, or failure to enforce safety practices. Medical records should document the injury and its connection to the work incident, including surgical decisions about the amputation. Damages need support from ongoing care needs, lost earnings, and other economic and non-economic impacts.

Get legal help for your amputation injury

ELG Law has been helping workers pursue compensation for workplace injuries for over 35 years. The difference between a fair settlement and an inadequate one can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars over your lifetime. Contact ELG Law for a free consultation about your amputation injury and the compensation you deserve under FELA.