Posts by Ryan Y. Cunningham
Major Indicators That a Car Accident Victim’s Life is in Danger
Every car crash is serious. After all, we refer to minor crashes as “fender benders,” yet the impact is enough to bend a fender. While not all car accident victims will sustain injuries, many do – and those injuries can be life-threatening. Getting proper care as quickly as possible can be the difference between healing…
Read MoreTruck Rollovers – Causes and Myths
According to ATBS, a business and accounting firm for the trucking industry, there are three basic myths about truck rollovers that drivers, the industry, and the public should understand. Rollovers are largely caused by bad driving conditions. ATBS claims that: Under four percent of truck rollovers are caused by poor roads 56% of truck rollovers…
Read MoreChainsaws Recalled Because They Might Not Turn Off
Harbor Freight Tools announced the recall of approximately one million of its electric chainsaws due to a malfunctioning power switch. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports the power switch is defective, and can allow the chainsaw to continue running even after the operator has turned the switch to the “Off” position, putting the operator…
Read MoreNew Tariffs Could Threaten Oil Production in Oklahoma
President Trump recently announced he is going forward with his plan to apply tariffs on imported steel and aluminum—25 percent and 10 percent, respectively. When he announced his initial plan in March, U.S. allies Canada, Mexico, and the European Union were to be exempt, but the most recent announcement includes all three. The plan has…
Read MoreWhat Is an Oil Well Blowout?
An oil well blowout is an uncontrolled release of crude oil. Blowouts occur when pressure release systems fail. They can also occur if a spark or flame contacts the oil or for other reasons. Oil well blowouts cause death and catastrophic injuries to workers near the scene of a blowout. Prior to the 1920s, according…
Read MoreSeniors Are Increasingly Suffering from Traumatic Brain Injuries and Concussions
CBS News reported in 2017 that a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the rate of concussions among the elderly is increasing dramatically. These numbers are based on a report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CBS News reported “One in every 45 Americans 75 and older…
Read MoreTraumatic Brain Injury – What It Is, Why It Happens
Our brains are incredibly complex. The medical and scientific communities make frequent breakthroughs in understanding how it works, but researchers agree that much of the knowledge about our brains still remains a mystery. Although modern medicine makes great strides every day in diagnosing and treating brain injuries, there’s still a lot to understand about the…
Read MoreCunningham & Mears Is a Proud Supporter of Wings
Our society does a pretty good job of providing educational opportunities to special needs children. But after they graduate high school many of these people are faced with a very difficult reality that there just aren’t many options for them for what they can do. Wings is an incredible organization that was founded with the goal of…
Read MoreOil Rig Explosion Injures Two in Wewoka
An oil rig caught fire and exploded in Wewoka, about an hour outside of Oklahoma City, and injured two workers. The explosion occurred on April 2 while workers were installing an oil and gas pumping unit near Highway 56. Two workers were injured in the accident. One was evacuated by helicopter to a hospital in…
Read MoreThe Long-Term Effects of Spinal Cord Injuries
One of the most serious injuries a person can sustain is a spinal cord injury. This type of physical trauma can result in paraplegia, an inability to move the lower part of the body, or quadriplegia, which is the inability to move the body at all. With any spinal cord injury, even if the patient…
Read MoreWhy Do Tractor Trailer Rollovers Occur?
Truck rollover accidents can be some of the most deadly crashes on the highway. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) states that an average of four cargo tank truck rollovers happen every day in the United States. And, many of these incidents are preventable, as they occur due to driver negligence or poor truck…
Read MoreBill Requiring Children to Wear Seatbelts Passes Oklahoma House
As spring starts in earnest and more families take to the highways for vacations and road trips, the risk of car accidents goes up. You may not be aware that, currently in Oklahoma, children between the ages of eight and 13 can ride in the backs of vehicles without having to wear a seatbelt. A…
Read MoreThe Dangers of Oil and Gas Extraction: Avoiding Falls
Every workplace carries with it some degree of risk of injury for workers, but some industries, such as oil and gas extraction, are more dangerous than others. PBS News reports that, on average, one oil field worker dies about very six weeks on the job in the Bakken fields, which tend to get a lot…
Read MoreOpioid-Related Car Crashes See a Seven-fold Increase
A CBS News story reports that prescriptions for OxyContin (oxycodone), Vicoprofen (hydrocodone) and morphine have quadrupled from 76 million in 1991 to nearly 300 million in 2014. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that opioids killed more than 33,000 people in 2015, which is more than any year on record. One of…
Read MoreDram Shop Liability In Oklahoma
According to recently published data, approximately one third of all road fatalities in Oklahoma involve drunk driving. If you are injured by a drunk driver in Oklahoma, you may be able to sue a number of parties, including the bar that served the drunk driver. Basis for server liability in Oklahoma Oklahoma’s Supreme Court has held that…
Read MoreInjured By A Government Employee
News 9 reported a total of 22 school bus accidents in 2012 in the Oklahoma City area. More than a third of these accidents were caused by driver negligence. If you are injured due to the negligence or fault of a city worker, such as a school bus driver or city tow truck operator, you may be…
Read MoreTexting And Driving: A Deadly Combination
Texting while driving is the top nationwide cause of teen road deaths in the United States. Most states ban all texting while driving. Oklahoma is among a small minority of states that have less restrictive bans. Impact of texting Researchers at Virginia Tech found that texting while driving virtually doubles the risk of crashes. This is because texting…
Read MoreClaiming Damages For Dog Bites
An Oklahoma City toddler was reported to be in critical condition after being bitten multiple times by a dog. Police believe that the child was taking food to the dog just before the bite and that the child was unattended at the time of the accident. Oklahoma’s dog bite law Oklahoma law imposes strict liability…
Read MoreWhat You Should Know About Motorcycle Helmets for Oklahoma City motorcyclist
According to a recent accident report, a motorcycle carrying two riders veered off the roadway and hit a cable barrier. Both riders were thrown from the motorcycle — neither was wearing a helmet. Between 2008 and 2010, 42 percent of all motorcyclists killed while riding were not wearing a helmet. Oklahoma’s helmet law Oklahoma is a partial helmet-law…
Read MoreMotorcycle Safety Tips for Oklahoma City motorcyclist
An Oklahoma City motorcyclist was killed while trying to exit on Broadway Extension toward Interstate 44. According to police, the victim was momentarily distracted when their motorcycle jumped a curb and rolled over several times before stopping, after which he was pronounced dead at the scene. Rider error is one of the most common causes of fatal…
Read MoreBrain Injuries — What to Look For
Brain injuries lead to approximately 50,000 U.S. deaths and 230,000 hospitalizations each year, and yield annual medical and rehabilitative costs of more than $76 billion. Nearly half of all brain injuries result from motor vehicle crashes. Another major source of brain injuries are contact sports, such as football. Need for medical advice Even seemingly minor brain injuries can…
Read MoreClaiming Damages For Food Poisoning In Oklahoma
A health reporter for Channel 9 News in Oklahoma City was nearly killed by food poisoning after she ate undercooked ground beef at a barbecue. Initial symptoms included terrible heartburn, which progressed to diarrhea, vomiting and disorientation. She was rushed to the hospital, where blood tests showed that her liver and kidneys had shut down…
Read MoreBicycle Laws and Negligence in Oklahoma
Thousands of Oklahomans use their bikes to get around, especially during pleasant weather days. Cycling is great exercise, fuel-efficient, and fun. However, biking can also be dangerous if cyclists and motorists don’t understand how (or simply refuse) to share the road. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 857 bicyclists lost their lives…
Read MoreAsleep at the Wheel — No Joke
Accident attorneys in Oklahoma City cite the most common reasons for serious truck and other motor vehicle accidents in our state: Failure to follow the rules of the road Violation of state or federal safety regulations Poor maintenance of vehicle Defective parts in vehicle Fatigue Drivers of any kind of vehicle are plagued with fatigue…
Read MoreCovering Your Loss: Damage by Uninsured Motorists
Being in an accident is bad enough. Your car was towed and your neck hurts. However, it gets worse when you find out the driver who hit you has no insurance. What do you need to know about an uninsured motorist accident lawsuit? The first thing to understand is the extent of your insurance coverage.…
Read More