Nassco Accident Suit Names Government
The U.S. government has ended up as the unlikely defendant in a lawsuit resulting from a 1989 crane accident at the privately owned National Steel & Shipbuilding Co. that seriously injured a shipyard employee.
Attorney Preston Easley filed the lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court on behalf of James Primmer, a 25-year Nassco employee. According to the lawsuit, Primmer, 48, fell 30 feet from a gantry crane on Nov. 29, 1989, permanently injuring his nervous system and vertebrae. Doctors implanted two metal rods in Primmer’s back, and it is unlikely he will ever work again, the attorney said.
Initially, Easley intended to sue Nassco for negligence. He is already representing five of six shipyard employees in a lawsuit against Nassco who were injured July 10, 1987, when a steel basket carrying the 12 men fell 30 feet to the deck of a Navy supply ship while it was being moved by another gantry crane. Six of the men were killed.
While researching the history of the crane involved in the accident last November, Easley said he was surprised to learn that it and two others at Nassco are owned by the Maritime Administration, which is an agency of the U.S. Department of Transportation. That came as news to both the Maritime Administration and Nassco, Easley said.
“Apparently, after World War II, the Maritime Administration had all these cranes on its hands they leased them out to private shipyards. At least, that’s what I’m told,” Easley said. “Nassco’s in-house attorneys and staff did not know the cranes are owned by the federal government until I told them.”
Research done by his staff showed that the crane involved in last year’s accident had been leased to Nassco by the federal agency since 1973. However, details of the lease were unclear on Tuesday, and it was not known if Nassco has ever made any lease payments to the government.
Nassco President Richard Vortmann and other company executives failed to return a reporter’s phone calls. John Swank, Maritime Administration spokesman in Washington, said he was not familiar with the agency’s lease with Nassco and declined to comment on the lawsuit.
A few weeks after the accident, the Maritime Administration denied a claim filed in Washington on Primmer’s behalf.
“They denied the claim and demanded that Nassco defend them in the lawsuit,” Easley said.
The claim denial led to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in federal court. Primmer, who Easley said requires round-the-clock care, and his wife are asking for unspecified damages in the complaint.
The crane involved in Primmer’s accident is a gantry crane that travels along a repair dock on stationary tracks. According to the lawsuit, Primmer fell to the ground when a guard rail he was leaning against gave way.
A different gantry crane was involved in the 1987 accident, the worst ever at Nassco. The crane is powered by a diesel engine that generates electricity to power the boom. Conventional hydraulic cranes operate on the ground and can be moved from one location to another.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration conducted a six-month investigation into the 1987 accident and cited Nassco for 19 safety violations relating to the crane. The safety agency also proposed $62,800 in fines.
An additional “wall-to-wall” safety inspection of the shipyard followed the investigation and federal inspectors found 451 safety violations and proposed an additional $72,000 in fines.
