Video Shows Horrific Fire-Related Death of Man in Chicago Nursing Home

Posted on Dec 16, 2013 6:15pm EST

 

The New York Daily News had a horrific story last week about a wheelchair-bound Chicago man who caught fire and died at a nursing home in 2011. The man rolled around hysterically while employees attempted to spray him with a fire extinguisher and wheeled him outside.

According to the Daily News, Michael Lewis was smoking on a patio outside of the Lake Shore HealthCare and Rehabilitation Centre when a lighter in his pocket set his shirt on fire. Lewis attempted to roll himself inside to seek help as the flames ignited.

Surveillance video obtained by the media shows other patients trying to put out the flames on Lewis. Eventually, a staff member with an extinguisher rolled Lewis outside and put the fire out. Several minutes later, a staff member came out with an oxygen tank, as EMS crews arrived to the scene and tried to resuscitate Lewis.

Lewis’ family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Lake Shore HealthCare and Rehabilitation Centre, saying that the only safety precaution the facility took was placing a surveillance camera outside of the designated smoking area.

“He burned to death,” Lisa Couch, Lewis’ sister told CBS News. “He sustained burns from mid-thigh up to the eyebrows.”

Aside from not having proper staffing available to man smoking areas, as we reported in Monday’s blog, many nursing homes in the U.S. operate with limited sprinkler systems, not designed to handle larger fires.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed because of nursing home abuse or neglect, contact our firm toll free at 877-699-1152 for a free consultation. Rockland County nursing home attorney Jeffrey M. Adams and his legal team believe that the management and staff at nursing homes, group homes and assisted living facilities owe residents safe, secure and protective facilities.

Man Decapitated, Two Killed In Bronx Auto Accident

Posted on Nov 22, 2013 6:05pm EST
 

The New York Daily News reported last week that an auto accident on the Hutchinson River Parkway in the Bronx on November 9 resulted in two fatalities and the decapitation of a man.
According to the Daily News, cab driver Ata Noorzi, 51, and his fare Patrick Sheehan, 54, were killed when an SUV went airborne on the highway and into traffic, ripping the roof off the livery cab, a Lincoln Town Car.

Noorzi, an Afghani immigrant, leaves behind two sons and two daughters, while Sheehan, a banker for Wells Fargo, leaves behind three boys. “It’s always the good ones who go first,” said. Obid Noorzi, Noorzi’s brother, to the Daily News. “He never did anything wrong. Never in trouble, not a parking ticket.”

Sheehan was reportedly making a business trip to the airport from his home in Larchmont, N.Y. The Daily News reported that as Noorzi drove southbound on the highway, a black SUV heading northbound went airborne over an overpass, striking the top of the Town Car. The crash occurred around 7:10 a.m.

“The 45-year-old driver skidded across three lanes, slammed into the median and sailed directly into Noorzi’s cab — tearing its roof off and killing both men inside,” the Daily News reported. “The black SUV then slammed into a white SUV, bounced into the overpass and finally came to a stop on its roof.”

Sheehan was reportedly decapitated. The driver of the black SUV survived the crash and was taken to Jacobi Medical Center along with a passenger in the vehicle for treatment for serious injuries. The driver of the white SUV involved in the subsequent crash, as well as a passenger, were transported to the same hospital with minor injuries.

“I went to the taxi, but it was too late,” a witness to the crash told the Daily News. “The driver and the passenger were dead. … There was an arm in the road. It was horrible. It was really terrible to see.”
The Daily News reported that police were attempting to get a court order for a blood sample from the driver of the black SUV following the accident to determine if he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Locate a Rockland County Injury Lawyer
The pictures of the aftermath of this crash are horrific. If a driver is found at fault for this crash, he or she could be held liable for wrongful death, as well as the personal injuries suffered by the living victims.

If you have suffered an injury or lost a loved one because of a negligent driver in Rockland County or its surrounding areas, we will advocate on your behalf. Contact our lawyers today at (877) 699-1152 to learn more.

Adams Law Firm, P.C. – Rockland County Injury Attorney

Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/dead-crash-bronx-highway-officials-article-1.1511568