Published: June 19, 2009 12:13 am      

Worker’s injury prompts lawsuit

A Summerhill couple is suing a German conglomerate, saying it is liable for the husband’s catastrophic brain injuries in an industrial accident.

Joseph and Amy Jarvie are seeking more than $150,000 from Siemans AG in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Johnstown.

In 1969, Morgan Construction Co. of Massachusetts – now part of Siemans – sold Bethlehem Steel a wire drawing machine it made, the suit says. The machinery was included when Johnstown Wire Technologies took over part of the Bethlehem operation.

In December 2007, JWF employee Jarvie was working as a wire drawer machine operator. The wire broke so Jarvie had to change the die. The machine was shut down.

“Plaintiff proceeded to cut the wire in order for it to be rethreaded into the new die,” the lawsuit said. “In the process of cutting the wire, it recoiled and struck him in his left temple.”

The suit said the wire penetrated Joseph Jarvie’s brain.

Among Jarvie’s impairments are traumatic brain injury, gait dysfunction, balance disorder, depression, impaired speech and nervous system damage, the suit said.

A press contact for Siemans in the United States could not be reached for comment.

The lawsuit said the Jarvies are suffering from the loss of an earnings stream.

The Jarvies claim the machine was in an unsafe and dangerous condition, and assail Siemans for:

n “Designing a guarding device that required it to be lifted into the up position in order to cut broken wire and rethread wire inside the machine.”

n “Failure to provide breaking device for the die to spool to keep restraint wire under tension after it had been cut.”

n Failure to provide a mechanical clamping device.

A jury trial is demanded.