Twenty-eight-year-old oilfield worker Michael Shelton has filed suit against Fowler Transportation, Ltd. for injuries he suffered when he was crushed by oilfield equipment while rigging up a land rig outside Cuero, Texas. Mr. Shelton is represented by John David Hart of The Law Offices of John David Hart of Fort Worth, Harold Eisenman of Harold Eisenman, PC of Houston and Wilbert J. Saucier, Jr. of Wilbert J. Saucier, Jr., Inc. of Pineville, Louisiana.

On August 12, 2011, Shelton was working for Big E Drilling at a drill site operated by Petrohawk Corporation, five miles west of Cuero, Texas. He was assisting in the installation of a roof over a mud tank when the roof, which was being lifted by a crane owned and operated by Fowler Transportation, became separated from its support legs and landed on him, pinning him to the floor of the mud tank. More than a year after the accident, Mr. Shelton is unable to return to work and continues to undergo treatment for his injuries.

“Michael Shelton faces a lifetime of pain because of his injuries,” said attorney John David Hart of the Law Offices of John David Hart in Fort Worth, who represents Mr. Shelton. “This is another example of an innocent victim suffering because an oil and gas service company failed to ensure safe crane operations. Moving heavy equipment with cranes demands safe practices by the crane operators. Rig moving companies, oil field service companies, crane operators and oil and gas companies must operate with safety as their first priority.”

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division, alleges that Fowler Transportation, Ltd. and its employees failed to signal and operate the crane in a safe manner.