Expert Advocacy

DC Metro Railway Accident Kills Two Veteran Workers

Public transportation rail systems and trains are potentially very hazardous—not only to pedestrians and patrons but to maintenance workers working on the system. Unfortunately, this proved true yesterday when two veteran employees of Washington, DC’s Metro system–Jeff Garrard, 49, and Sung Duk Oh, 68–lost their lives as they were crushed beneath a maintenance truck.

This tragic workplace accident happened around 1:45 a.m. on January 26, 2010, near Rockville, Maryland while the workers were installing new train control equipment on the track bed. They usually ended their shift at 11:30 p.m. but were working overtime at the time. The maintenance truck that hit the victims had four employees inside it. Jim Graham, chairman of the Metro Board of Directors said that “the tragedy was a direct result of human error.”

The victims were known to have impeccable track records and had not laxed in their services to Metro. With over 10,000 hours of experience between them, Garrard and Oh were fastidious and always careful. Yet, they lost their lives due to someone else’s carelessness and negligence. Both Garrard and Oh lived in Montgomery County, Maryland. Garrard is survived by a wife and teenage daughter (pictured above, photo courtesy of this Washington Post story). It is always very difficult losing a loved one. In normal circumstances it becomes hard to adjust to someone’s passing away. But if a cherished person loses his life to such carelessness, the wounds never seem to heal. Our prayers go out to Garrard’s and Oh’s family.

In addition, this is not an accident unique to Washington DC’s public transportation system. It could have just as easily happened in San Diego or anywhere in California’s many public transportation services. One has to wonder whether the late hours and long hours that the crews were working also played a factor in this industrial accident. Many times accidents like these occur when workers are fatigued.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a San Diego workplace accident, please contact San Diego industrial accident lawyer and the San Diego personal injury attorneys. You may also contact the San Diego truck accident lawyers for a free consultation and helpful information.