A Ruston worker hurt offshore comes home to Lincoln Parish, off I-20 or US-167, and the hospital here is Northern Louisiana Medical Center on East Vaughn Avenue. The first written record of the injury is the employer’s incident report, and a copy of it belongs in your folder before you sign anything else. If any part of the case runs under Louisiana law, a Lincoln Parish suit can be filed in the Third Judicial District Court at the Lincoln Parish Courthouse, 100 West Texas Avenue in Ruston. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers is at 1831 North Trenton Street, Suite 2, in Ruston. Once the facts give us an honest basis, we send preservation demands for the vessel or platform logs and the failed equipment, and we get the names and phone numbers of crew members, who rotate off on fixed schedules and may not be available within two weeks. The logs show what the crew recorded about the conditions and the work that day, and the failed equipment, kept as it was after the accident, shows what gave way and who was responsible for maintaining it.
The law that governs an offshore injury is mostly federal and follows the work rather than the parish. Before a Lincoln Parish resident is told only a state clock applies, we sort out whether the claim runs on the seaman track, the longshore track or the third-party track under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA).
What Causes Offshore Rig and Platform Accidents?
Offshore workers have the right to a safe workplace, and employers in the oil, gas, and maritime industries have specific obligations to train and protect workers on rigs and platforms. Negligence still causes offshore accidents, and they can cause catastrophic injuries, including spinal cord injury or brain injury, and death. Injuries on land rigs and other onshore oilfield work are covered on our Louisiana oilfield accident page.
Offshore Explosions and Fires
Offshore workers routinely handle or come into contact with combustible, volatile substances, from drilling to transporting oil and natural gas, and one mistake can trigger a massive explosion or an uncontrollable fire. Offshore explosions and fires can result from:
- Watercraft collisions
- Improper storage of oil or gas
- Failure to properly train offshore workers
- Failure to inspect or maintain pipelines, essential equipment or vessels
Burns, carbon monoxide poisoning and other catastrophic injuries can harm dozens of workers at once when an offshore fire or explosion happens. If the accident sinks a vessel or leaves workers trapped on a burning platform, the results can be deadly.
Toxic Exposures
Offshore workers may come into contact with caustic industrial chemicals, cancer-causing asbestos and other toxins. In some cases a single exposure causes serious injury; in others, routine exposure over time causes devastating illness, like mesothelioma after years of asbestos exposure. Equipment manufacturers, oil and gas companies and their contractors can be liable for the harm caused by offshore toxic exposures.
Equipment Failures
Equipment fails because of design flaws, manufacturing mistakes or a failure to maintain it, and drownings, electrocutions, falls and equipment collapses can follow. Manufacturers, employers, contractors and others can be responsible for the harm caused by equipment-related offshore accidents.
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Get directions →Helicopter and Crew Boat Transfers to Gulf Platforms
Injuries sustained in transit to or from an offshore platform are compensable under maritime law. If you are a Jones Act seaman, a transit injury falls within your employment, and your employer’s maintenance and cure obligations begin from the date of injury. If you are not a seaman, general maritime law still governs crew boat injuries: the vessel operator owes passengers a duty of reasonable care. Helicopter transport to and from Gulf platforms involves extended overwater flights with limited rescue access, and crashes, hard landings and mechanical failures during that transit generate maritime claims against the operator and potentially against your employer. Transit injury classifications can be complex, and the transport company’s evidence can disappear quickly.
Which Federal Law Covers a Ruston Worker Hurt Offshore?
Different laws apply depending on whether you were working at the time of the accident and what type of work you were doing, and you could have more than one claim. If you work aboard a vessel, Jones Act seaman status, maintenance and cure (the daily living allowance and medical care a seaman’s employer owes regardless of fault) and unseaworthiness are covered on our Ruston maritime page. The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) covers maritime workers who are not seamen, including workers on fixed offshore platforms. It provides no-fault administrative benefits at two-thirds of average weekly wage but does not bar a separate third-party tort claim against a vessel owner under Section 905(b).
Each track has its own filing deadline. A seaman has three years under the Jones Act statute of limitations, 46 U.S.C. § 30106. LHWCA administrative claims must be filed within one year of injury or last compensation payment under 33 U.S.C. § 913, and that year does not start until you know, or should know, that the injury is related to your work. An OCSLA third-party claim follows Louisiana law: you have two years from the day you were hurt to file suit (La. C.C. art. 3493.1). The same sorting applies to a wrongful death claim when a worker does not come home.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes; each case is decided on its own facts. See our full case results.
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Founder Trey Morris leads every injury case the firm takes.
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Seth and Jessica were always there to help and I could tell they truly had my best interest in mind. I was overwhelmed after my incident and they walked me through every step of the way and provided a lot of relief.
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I hired [Trey Morris Injury Lawyers] to represent me with my case.
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Testimonials do not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
How Much Is an Offshore Accident Settlement Worth?
What you can recover depends on your injuries and the type of claims you have. Offshore accident claims can result in compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, permanent disability and other losses.
Frequently Asked Questions
I live in Ruston and work offshore. Can I sue my employer, or am I limited to workers' compensation?
Can I lose my job or be blacklisted for filing an offshore injury claim?
Does the Louisiana Oilfield Indemnity Act affect my claim?
What should I do immediately after an offshore injury?
How much does hiring an offshore injury attorney cost?
Last updated October 17, 2026