A Moorhead, Minn., electrician who suffered severe burns while working on a hot water tank at a sugarbeet processing plant in Wahpeton, N.D., has filed a federal lawsuit against the Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative alleging negligence.
Zachary White was an employee of Moorhead Electric when he received burns on up to 49 percent of his body, with third-degree burns on up to 29 percent of his body, court documents stated.
On Nov. 4, 2014, White and another electrician were working on the wiring of a hot water tank at the plant. They were on a scissor lift next to the tank, 15 to 20 feet above the floor, when pumps were remotely activated and the tank started overflowing, court documents stated.
The tank dumped "a continuing waterfall of scalding water" onto White and the other electrician, court documents stated. To escape the scalding water, the pair had to jump from the lift to the concrete floor below, a fall that injured them, court documents stated.
White's lawsuit, filed Feb. 26, alleges that he was unaware the tank was in use and that Minn-Dak should have warned him. He also asserts that the tank should have been designed to keep hot water from escaping, court documents said.
White is seeking more than $75,000 in damages to cover his physical and emotional pain, lost wages and medical expenses.
Source: www.inforum.com