Burn injuries, sadly, continue to be one of the leading causes of preventable death and disability every year in the United States. Fortunately, the number of individuals affected by burns has decreased over the past twenty years, largely due to increased public awareness about burn injuries and hazards.

By familiarizing yourself with potential burn injuries, you can reduce the likelihood that you or a family member will suffer a serious burn injury.

One of the most dangerous areas of a house in terms of burn injuries is the kitchen. By observing the following safety tips in the kitchen, you can hopefully keep yourself and your family safe from unnecessary harm.

• Make sure that appliances are unplugged when they are not in use. As soon as you finish using an appliance, unplug it so that you do not forget.
• Keep all hot cooking equipment far back on the counter. This will prevent your children from reaching up and touching hot equipment and will additionally prevent equipment from falling off the counter and spilling hot contents.
• Avoid using tablecloths if you have children. If you place hot items on a tablecloth, your children may pull on an overhanging end and pull the hot items onto them.
• When moving hot kitchen items like a pot or a skillet, you should hold them over the countertop as much as possible. If you happen to accidentally drop the item, it will land on the countertop instead of on you or another person.
• If you have a child, never hold your child while you are cooking. By holding a child while cooking, you increase the possibility that you will drop or spill hot materials and injure either yourself or your child.

Call a Minneapolis Burn Injury Lawyer

If you or someone you know has suffered a burn injury, contact a Minneapolis burn injury lawyer of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PL.L.C. today at 612-362-0000 to schedule a consultation.

The National Safety Council estimates that occupational falls account for 1500 deaths each year, and another 300,000 injuries. In light of these staggering figures, it is important to be aware of keeping yourself and your loved ones safe, especially when icy and snowy winter weather makes a dangerous fall all the more likely.

• When attempting to walk on ice or snow, the first step to ensuring safety is to be dressed appropriately—especially when it comes to your footwear! Be sure that you are wearing shoes with good traction, which will help grip the ground under your feet, even if it is more slippery than usual.
• You should walk slowly and take small steps so that you are less likely to lose your balance. Be sure to have both of your hands free and out of your pockets so that you will be able to brace yourself should you slip or fall.
• As much as possible, avoid walkways that are cluttered with debris or have visible ice, snow, or other slippery material. If it is impossible to avoid these areas, extend your foot and tap on a potentially slick area before walking on it so that you can gauge how slippery it really is.
• Should preventative measures fail and you begin to slip or fall, you can reduce the likelihood of injury by rolling with your fall. If possible, try to roll your body backward, rather than forward.
• While you may be scared as you begin your fall, try to relax as much as possible, as this will help prevent muscle strain when you do hit the ground. If you are carrying something, drop whatever is in your hands and use your hands and arms to protect yourself instead.

If you or someone you know needs legal counsel following an injuring slip or fall, contact the Minneapolis slip and fall lawyers of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PLLC today at 612-362-0000.

It is important to remember that there is some danger in using a bicycle. This is why safety equipment exists. Through proper use of safety equipment, you may avoid some injuries.

The number one most important piece of safety equipment for any cyclist, of any age, is the helmet. When a helmet is properly fitted and used, it can prevent serious head and brain injuries. Make sure that the helmet fits snugly on your head or your child’s head. Always use the chin strap. It is designed to keep the helmet in place on the head.

Another safety precaution that can be used is padding. Elbow pads and knee pads are easy to find for children, and can provide good protection against cuts and scrapes on the knees and elbows. They may also prevent joint injury.

Contact a Minneapolis Personal Injury Lawyer

If you or someone you know has been injured in a bicycle accident, contact the Minneapolis child injury lawyers of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PLLC at 612-362-0000.

Personal watercrafts are different from most other kinds of recreational vehicles. With any vehicle there is a risk of collision with another vehicle, another watercraft, a stationary object, or land. A multiple collision vehicle is always dangerous. There is even more danger, however, when the vehicle is open. For this reason, vehicles like personal watercrafts carry more risk than other vehicles.

Personal watercrafts, however, carry with them an inherent risk that is unique to them. When a rider falls off of a personal watercraft, there is a chance that he or she will fall directly behind the high pressure water jet. If this happens, the pressure of the water is enough to enter any orifice and cause serious injury or death. There is also the possibility of drowning.

Every vehicle is dangerous if precautions are not taken. However, even when precautions are taken, accidents can happen.

Speak with a Minneapolis Personal Injury Lawyer

If you or a loved one has been injured by a personal watercraft, contact the Minneapolis personal injury lawyers of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen at 612-362-0000.

There are a lot of different ways in which a person can get burned at home. Some of these will require a trip to the emergency room, but many are completely treatable at home. This can be accomplished with some common household items and plants.

One of the first things that you should consider to soothe your burn is milk. Whole milk works best for burns because of the fat content. All you need to do is soak your burn in milk for about 15 seconds. If this is difficult, you can soak a towel in milk and lay it on the burn for the same amount of time. This will soothe the burn rapidly.

Another option is an aloe vera plant. Simply break off one of the leaves at a thick point and rub the gel on your burn. This is very soothing and works quickly.

A more unusual remedy is Preparation H. This hemorrhoid cream is used for soothing burning sensations. As such, it is just as useful for soothing the burning sensation caused by burns. It is also important to keep your burn elevated.

Speak with a Minneapolis Burn Injury Lawyer

While these remedies can help with many burns, they will not heal all of them. If you or someone you know has been seriously injured by burns, contact the Minneapolis burn injury lawyers of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PLLC at 612-362-0000.

• Stop and pull off the road.
• Turn off your engine.
• If you are not injured, get out of your car and move a safe distance away.
• Call 911. Always ask for police to come to the scene.
• Exchange information. You need:
  • driver’s full name
  • driver’s address
  • phone number
  • driver’s license number of the driver
  • insurance company name, agent, address, phone number
• Write down the make, model, license plate number of any involved vehicles.
• Get name, address, and phone number of eye witnesses.
• Get name and badge number of attending police officer.
• See a doctor for a complete exam right after the accident, even if you think you are not injured because it is not unusual for symptoms to show days later.
• Report the accident to your car insurance agent and relay the information you collected at the scene.
• Insurance companies will sometimes request a written or tape-recorded statement from persons involved in the accident — you are not required to give a statement — it is advisable to discuss the matter with a lawyer first.
• Contact an experienced car accident attorney.

Speak with a Minneapolis Personal Injury Lawyer

If you or someone you know has been involved in a serious crash, contact the Minneapolis personal injury lawyers of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PLLC at 612-362-0000.

Motorcycles can provide a great deal of fun. They can also give you great mileage, cutting down on your gas expenses. However, motorcycles are also dangerous. These dangers come from two main sources. The first is unsafe driving on the part of the motorcyclist. The second is unsafe driving on the part of others.

Motorcycles are small and fast. As such, they can be used to weave in and out of traffic. This, however, is a very dangerous practice and is highly inconsiderate of other drivers. While not all motorcycle riders drive in this fashion, there are those who do. These people make motorcycles very dangerous for themselves, and make the road more dangerous for others.

There are also other drivers who contribute to motorcycle accidents. All cars have blind spots, but not every driver checks them. Because motorcycles are so small, it is easy for them to get caught in these blind spots. If the driver does not check his or her blind spot and changes lanes, there is going to be a collision. Most motorcycle accidents are actually caused by other drivers who did not see the motorcycle.

While motorcycles can be great, they can also be dangerous. Even if you drive safely, there are other drivers on the road who may not. This is what leads to accidents.

Speak with a Minneapolis Motorcycle Accident Lawyer

If you or someone you know has been involved in a motorcycle accident, contact the Minneapolis motorcycle accident attorneys of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen at 612-362-0000.

Our Minneapolis Motorcycle Accident Injury Attorneys represent victims of personal injury and motorcycle accidents in Minneapolis and throughout the state of Minnesota, including: Afton, Anoka, Apple Valley, Arden Hills, Blaine, Bloomington, Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Burnsville, Cambridge, Champlin, Cokato, Columbia Heights, Coon Rapids, Cottage Grove, Crystal, Delano, Eagan, Eden Prairie, Edina, Falcon Heights, Forest Lake, Fridley, Golden Valley, Hopkins, Hugo, Inver Grove Heights, Isanti, Lake Elmo, Lakeville, Lindstrom, Lino Lakes, Little Canada, Maple Grove, Mahtomedi, Maplewood, Mendota Heights, Minneapolis, Minnetonka, Mounds View, New Brighton, New Hope, North St. Paul, Oakdale, Plymouth, Princeton, Richfield, Robbinsdale, Roseville, St. Anthony, St. Louis Park, St. Paul, Savage, Shakopee, Shoreview, South St. Paul, Spring Lake Park, Vadnais Heights, West St. Paul, White Bear Lake, Woodbury, and Zimmerman.

Mold is serious problem in many homes. If a home has a lot of moisture and is warm, then there is a high likelihood that mold can grow in your residence. This is especially true for areas of high humidity.

The health effects of mold are very serious. If mold spores, which are emitted in the air, are breathed in, they can lead to numerous side effects. Molds can worsen allergy conditions. They can also worsen asthma cases. Mold also leads to:

• Itching
• Scratching
• Runny nose
• Watery eyes
• Fatigue

If mold is found in an individual’s residence, it needs to be cleaned up quickly. Moreover the mold may have spread to other areas that are not immediately visible. If there is mold, there may also be a leak inside of a wall. What also helps combat mold are large amounts of light and air. Keeping the windows and doors open allows excess moisture within a home to escape.

People can purchase inexpensive devices that measure the humidity within a residence. Humidity should be below 50% to avoid the growth of mold, which can grow on any type of surface, whether the surface is tile, carpet, dry wall, or wood.

If the cause of the mold is outside of an individual’s direct control, the individual should take immediate action to notify those who have direct control, as mold can cause personal injury.

A Minnesota Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help

If you have been exposed to mold, contact the Minnesota personal injury lawyers of Terry and Slane by calling 612-362-0000.

Seat Belt Safety

Since the addition of seat belts, or safety belts, as a standard feature in automobile design, countless lives have been saved in automobile accidents due to their effectiveness in preventing injury.

However, for seat belts to efficiently protect you and your family, it is imperative that they are working properly and worn in the correct manner. By familiarizing yourself with the various seat belt designs, you can be sure to get the most out of these important safety features.

The Lap Belt

While the lap belt is infrequently used in new car designs, many older car models still have the lap belt model of safety belts. These belts consist of an adjustable strap that fits over the waist of the passenger. This design is frequently found in the back seats of cars and is still used on airplane seats.

To wear a lap belt properly, you should ensure that the belt is fitted snugly across the top of your lap, fitting over your pelvic bone, but not across your stomach.

Three-Point Design

The three-point design features one continuous piece of material that fits across the chest of the individual as well as over his or her lap. This is the most frequently used design in current car manufacturing.

To wear a three-point design properly, you should make sure that the shoulder strap is fitted directly across your chest and never tucked behind you or twisted. The lap portion of the belt should fit across your lap, similar to the position of the lap only belt.

Belt-in-Seat Model

The belt-in-seat safety belt is nearly identical to the three-point design except that the top of the shoulder strap is connected to the seat itself and not the frame of the automobile.

Car safety belts are critical safety features in automobiles, but they are only effective so long as they are functioning properly.

Contact a Minneapolis Product Liability Lawyer

If you have been in injured because of faulty or defective seat belts, contact the Minneapolis product liability lawyer of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, P.L.L.C. at 612-362-0000 today to discuss your legal rights and options.

Can You Trust Your Insurance Company?

If you get into an accident, one of the first things you would – and should – do is contact your insurance company and file a claim for suitable compensation. After all, such compensation is the reason you have an insurance policy in the first place. You pay your insurer monthly premiums in the expectation that your investment will come back to you if you are ever involved in a serious accident.

The question you need to ask yourself before doing so, however, is: “Can I trust my insurance company?”

A Conflict of Interest

Consider for a moment what the act of paying out a claim looks like to an insurance company. If monthly premium payments are money in, paying policyholders’ claims is money out. In other words, when you make a claim to your insurance company, you are asking them to reduce their profits by giving money to you – not exactly an attractive business practice.

Of course, under the terms of your insurance policy, the company is obligated to give you that money, whether or not they want to – but that doesn’t stop them from trying to reduce the sum they end up giving out. The bottom line is this: the initial offer (or even initial denial) that you receive from an insurance adjuster following an accident should almost ever be accepted as the final word.

In many situations, an insurance company will put up as many barriers to your claim as possible – barriers which will not be lowered until you acquire the representation of an experienced Minneapolis personal injury lawyer who has the clout to make the company pay attention to your claim.

Should You Consult an Attorney?

You should only consult a Minneapolis personal injury lawyer regarding your claim if you would like to get the full amount of compensation to which you are entitled. If you are happy to let the insurance company tell you how much money you do or don’t deserve, then a lawyer is unnecessary.

In other words, hiring a Minneapolis personal injury attorney to handle your case is almost always a smart decision. Put the experience of Terry, Slane & Ruohonen, PLLC to work for you today. Call 612-362-0000 to discuss your case with our professional staff.