Opinion
Civil Action No. 97-2628, Section: "J" (3)
May 24, 2000
FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
This matter came on for trial before the Court, sitting in Admiralty without a jury, on May 15, 16, 17 and 18, 2000. At the conclusion of the trial, and upon consideration of all of the evidence and arguments of counsel, the Court dictated oral findings of fact and conclusions of law on the issues of liability and medical causation. In summary, the Court found that the fire which occurred aboard Falcon Rig 19 near midnight on February 21, 1997, originated in the No. 2 engine and was caused by Falcon's negligence in failing to replace a clamp on the lube oil feed line on the port turbocharger of the No. 2 engine during a total overhaul and rebuilding of the 18 year old diesel engine. The Court thus concluded that judgment should be rendered in favor of Caterpillar, Inc. and against plaintiffs on the product liability claim. In addition, the Court found that claimant Steven Sanders had struck his head on a metal object while evacuating the rig in heavy smoke during the fire and that his cervical injuries and resulting surgery were proximately caused by his accident aboard Rig 19. Accordingly, the Court concluded that judgment should be rendered in favor of Sanders and against defendant Falcon, the owner and operator of Rig 19.
At the time of the fire, February 21, 1997, Rig 19 was owned by Blake Workover Drilling Company, a division of Falcon Workover Co., Inc. Falcon filed this complaint for limitation of or exoneration from liability, invoking the jurisdiction of this Court. Falcon also brought claims against OBI (Oil Barges, Inc.), which designed and built the rig, and Universal Machinery Company, which performed part of the work involved in overhauling or rebuilding the two Caterpillar D-399 engines which were installed on Rig 19. Falcon settled its claims against OBI and Universal, and agreed to assume the defense of and indemnify those parties for any liability to Sanders. Accordingly, although the Court concluded that the negligence of both Falcon and Universal contributed to the fire, it is unnecessary for the Court to apportion liability between these defendants, and the Court renders judgment in Sanders' favor against Falcon alone.
The Court now renders its findings of fact and conclusions of law on the issue of damages owed by Falcon to Steven Sanders, in accordance with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 52(a).
FINDINGS OF FACT 1.
Steven Sanders suffered smoke inhalation and a cervical injury on February 21, 1997, while evacuating the fire aboard Falcon Rig 19.
2.
At the time of his injury aboard Rig 19, Steven Sanders was a long time employee of Baker Hughes Inteq, in the capacity of MWD (Measurement While Drilling) Engineer.
3.
Upon being evacuated from Rig 19 as a result of the fire, Steven Sanders arrived home in Lafayette, Louisiana around mid-day on February 22, 1997. At the time he was experiencing symptoms of smoke inhalation, coughing up black mucous with chest pains and headaches (which he attributed to sinus congestion). The following day, February 23, 1997, Sanders was treated for these symptoms at a local hospital emergency room, prescribed medications and sent home.
4.
Sanders visited his long time family physician, Dr. John Bernard, on February 28, 1997, again complaining of symptoms of smoke inhalation and headaches.
5.
On March 3 or 4, 1997, approximately nine or ten days following the fire, Sanders began experiencing symptoms of cervical pain, with numbness and tingling down his right arm and hand. He first noticed these symptoms while shaving. The symptoms progressed, and during a visit to Dr. Bernard on March 14, 1997, Sanders reported his neck, right arm and hand symptoms, and also told Dr. Bernard for the first time, that he had struck his head on a metal object while evacuating the rig fire in heavy smoke.
6.
After cervical x-rays showed a degenerative condition in the cervical spine, Dr. Bernard treated Sanders conservatively for a while with medications, then referred him to a local neurosurgeon, Dr. Patrick Juneau, III.
7.
Dr. Juneau first examined Sanders on April 8, 1997 and reached a clinical diagnosis of nerve root compression with radiculopathy of the right upper extremity. Diagnostic procedures were performed and revealed pre-existing degenerative changes at the C-4 through the C-7 levels, with inflammation of the C-5, C-6 nerve root on the right side. Based upon the results of the clinical examination and the diagnostic tests, Dr. Juneau recommended surgery.
8.
Sanders was admitted to Lafayette General Hospital for several days in May, 1997, during which Dr. Juneau performed surgery which consisted of bilateral decompressive laminectomies of four levels of the cervical spine, C-4 through C-7, and a foraminotomy over the right C-6 nerve root.
9.
Following his discharge from the hospital, Sanders developed a seroma or infection of the surgical wound. This required having the wound incised and a drain inserted. The wound was then required to be cleansed and the bandages changed twice daily for a period of period of eight or nine months, to allow healing from the inside out. Sanders' wife performed some of these daily procedures, but due to her employment, a home health service nurse came out during the day to treat the wound.
10.
Dr. Juneau referred Sanders to a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation specialist, Dr. Wayne Lindemann, following his surgery. Dr. Lindemann prescribed a course of physical therapy and administered trigger point injections in the upper trapezius muscles bilaterally. He also referred Sanders to Dr. Gregory Gidman for a Functional Capacities Evaluation. The FCE demonstrated that Sanders had the physical capacity to perform medium work.
11.
In January, 1998, Sanders suffered a heart attack, for which he has been treated by Dr. Padumane Lakshmiprasad, a cardiologist. He was treated with diet, exercise and a weight loss program, as a result of which his condition improved significantly. Although it has been recommended that he try to reduce his stress level, Sanders was released by his cardiologist to return to his regular work. There is no evidence that his heart condition interferes with his present employability.
12.
However, as a result of the cervical injury he sustained, together with the four level laminectomy of the cervical spine, Dr. Lindemann has assigned a permanent disability rating of 15% of the whole body. He has imposed restrictions on Sanders' physical activities, advising that he avoid lifting more than a maximum of 20 pounds, or more than 10 pounds on a frequent basis. He should also avoid pushing or pulling more than 20 pounds, and avoid any repetitive overhead work or repetitive cervical movements. He needs to avoid sitting or standing in one position for sustained periods of time. He recommended Sanders return to work on an eight-hour per day job.
13.
Steven Sanders was 53 years old at the time of trial. He graduated from high school and attended three years of college before serving in the U.S. Air Force. Upon being honorably discharged in 1972, Sanders worked in the retail business briefly. He also re-enrolled in college, and eventually obtained an Associate Degree in Science in 1977. Sanders went to work in the oil and gas industry, initially for Baroid as a drilling fluids engineer. Around 1983, Sanders transferred to Baroid's MWD Division, which was a brand new field at the time. In 1988, Sanders went to work for Baker Hughes as a MWD engineer, which required him to utilize special tools and computers to measure the direction of the drilling while in progress and the type of formation being penetrated.
14.
Sanders has been married to his wife, Pam Sanders, for 19 years, and they have one 14 year old son. Sanders was previously very active when home, involved in family activities and his son's recreational endeavors. He can no longer play ball with his son as he did prior to his injury. Since he is not gainfully employed outside the home, Sanders describes himself as a "house husband". He cooks, does cleaning and chores around the house, takes his son to school, etc. His wife and son help out with the heavier chores, which Sanders can no longer perform alone. Sanders can drive or ride in a car, but must stop and rest if he attempts to travel any long distance. He has difficulties in a car because it is painful for him to turn his neck. He had one occasion when he went to get his hair cut and shampooed, and while lying back for the shampoo, got a sudden, severe numbness and pain in his cervical spine, which required immediate medical attention by Dr. Juneau. Dr. Juneau attributed this event to the fact that the surgical laminectomy has removed the bone (lamina) which normally covers the posterior of the cervical spine, exposing the spinal cord in that area to potential injury if Sanders hyper-flexes his neck.
15.
Sanders has been evaluated and tested by experts in the field of vocational rehabilitation. He has high to very high intellectual capacities and academic functioning. He also has residual, transferable skills from his prior employment. As a MWD Engineer he developed and used computer skills. He also has capacities for organization, supervision, and training of others. However, there are several reasons why Sanders is unable to return to his former employment in the oil and gas industry. First, he would have difficulties enduring the travel by crewboats or helicopters to and from offshore work locations, where his work was primarily located. Secondly, he would be unable to help pull heavy cables required in rigging up or rigging down the MWD cabin and equipment on location. Thirdly, he would also have difficulties in sitting at a computer terminal for long periods of time, monitoring and logging drilling data. Finally, Sanders would be at greater risk of re-injury if he had to suddenly escape from a rig in an emergency situation.
16.
The Court has read the various reports of the vocational experts, and listened to Sanders' testimony regarding his earnest attempt to rehabilitate himself and return to gainful employment. Once it became obvious that he would not likely return to his former employment, he inquired about being re-employed by Baker Hughes Inteq, within his physical limitations. However, Baker has no available positions for him. With the assistance of his vocational counselor, Sanders also sought alternative positions in the oil and gas industry, such as a marine dispatcher, inventory control, or data entry personnel positions, but found that there were no such positions available within the 35 mile radius of his home in Lafayette.
17.
Sanders has attempted to enroll at Remington College to study computer electronics. This would be an eighteen-month course which, if successfully completed, would permit Sanders to become gainfully employed at a salary in the range of between $17,000 to $31,000 per year, according to the vocational counselors. Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of Sanders and his vocational counselor, no funding has been found to pay the approximate $15,000 tuition required for him to enroll in this program.
18.
The Court finds that Steven Sanders has been totally disabled for gainful employment since February 22, 1997, but that with appropriate vocational guidance and re-training, Sanders will be able to return to gainful employment within his physical limitations. The Court finds that the evidence indicates Sanders should likely be able to earn a salary in the range of $30,000 upon his return to full time employment.
19.
According to Sanders' federal income tax returns which are in evidence, he had gross, taxable earnings which averaged $76,639 per year for the tax years 1995 through 1997. However, at the time of his injury in February, 1997, Sanders was earning at the annual rate of $84,275. Moreover, Sanders submitted evidence that he had qualified for and, but for his injury, likely would have received a promotion to Senior MWD Engineer, which would have resulted in a significant salary increase. Under these circumstances, the Court finds that using his annualized income at the time of the accident, $84,275 is a reasonable and realistic basis upon which to calculate Sanders' economic losses.
For 1997, this assumes the annualization of Sanders' actual earnings for the two months he worked prior to his injury. (Exhibit 122, Report of Kenneth Boudreaux).
Exhibit 126, Report of Douglas Womack, at Table 1.B.
The Court finds this to be a more reasonable predictor of Sanders' future earning capacity, rather than using the higher income he would have earned with his anticipated promotion, in order to more accurately reflect the uncertainty and downturns which have characterized the oil and gas drilling industry in recent years. With his experience and proven capabilities, it is likely Sanders would have survived such downturns in the industry, although perhaps with occasional bumps downward in his position or income.
20.
The Court finds that as a direct and proximate result of his injuries, Steven Sanders has incurred damages as follows:Past Medical Expenses $ 130,572.78
Stipulation re: Intervention by Baker Hughes.
Past Loss of Wages $ 234,171.00
Exh. 126, Report of Douglas Womack, Table 3.B (includes wages, fringes and meals).
Loss of Future Earning Capacity $ 462,632.00
Exh. 126, at Table 3.B (assumes return to work at $30,000 per year).
Past Pain, Suffering Disability $ 150,000.00
Future Pain, Suffering Disability $ 150,000.00
TOTAL DAMAGES 1,127,375.78
21.
As a consequence of the injuries sustained by Steven Sanders, intervenor, Baker Hughes, Inc., paid compensation benefits to Sanders in the amount of $63,957.43, and medical benefits in the amount of $133,777.02.
Rec. Doc. 354 355 (stipulation re: compensation and medical benefits paid).
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1.
This Court has jurisdiction of this matter under its Admiralty and Maritime jurisdiction, 28 U.S.C. § 1331 (1).2.
Steven Sanders is entitled to recover damages in the total sum of $1,127,375.78 as a direct and proximate consequence of his injury aboard Falcon Rig 19 on February 21, 1997.
3.
Intervenor, Baker Hughes, Inc. is entitled to recover the sum of $197,734.45 on its lien against the judgment in favor of plaintiff.
4.
Under general maritime law, pre-judgment interest at the rate of six percent per annum is awarded on all sums for past damages, from the date of injury, February 21, 1997; interest at the same rate is awarded from the date of judgment on sums for future damages. Doucet v. Wheless Drilling Co., 476 F.2d 336 (5th Cir. 1972); Williams v. Reading Bates Drilling Co., 750 F.2d 487, 491 (5th Cir. 1985); Verdin v. CB Boat Co., Inc. 860 F.2d 150, 158 (5th Cir. 1988).