A man who claims he suffered serious injuries while working on a barge, filed Madison County's first Jones Act case of 2006, against Alter Barge Lines.
Seeking damages in excess of $50,000, Bobby Lee Agan alleges that on July 18, 2005, he was a deckhand on the crew of The Phyllis which was traveling on the Mississippi River between Minnesota and Wisconsin.
He claims that he sustained severe injuries by tightening wires to reattach barges.
According to Agan's suit filed Jan. 4, Alter failed to provide him with a reasonably safe place to work, failed to provide him with reasonably suitable equipment to perform his assigned duties, failed to provide adequate supervision and failed to provide adequate assistance.
Agan claims he suffered extensive injuries to his facial bones and nerves and to his back and spine.
He claims his injuries have caused him to lose wages, suffer pain and suffering, become liable for medical expenses and caused a disability.
Agan is represented by David Jones of Pratt & Tobin in East Alton. The case has been assigned to circuit Judge Nicholas Byron.
Alter is based in Bettendorf, Iowa but also has an office in East Alton.
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