Slip-and-fall accidents can be fatal. While you might think about slip-and-fall accidents as one-off incidents that lead to broken wrists or a bump on the head, the truth is that they can be significant and cause real harm to the victims.
Slip-and-fall accidents can happen for many reasons. For example, if your loved one is in a nursing home and already struggles with balanced footing, having to walk on a slick walkway could be a recipe for disaster. Similarly, if you are walking into a nursing home to visit and slip on an icy walkway, you could fall, too.
What factors lead to fatal slip-and-fall accidents?
There are a few things that lead to fatal accidents. Some factors include:
- The angle of the fall and how the person has to catch themselves
- The distance between the person and the ground
- The hardness of the ground covering
- The presence of decorative items, like rocks, fountains or lighting fixtures
Here’s an example. If you trip and fall in an open field, you know that the likelihood of death is low. You could sprain an ankle or break your wrist, but since the ground is relatively soft, the likelihood of severe injuries is low. However, if you’re walking through a courtyard at a nursing home and trip over uneven pavement, you could fall forward into a decorative item, like a fountain, hit your head and suffer a fatal injury.
Slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accidents can be fatal, so they have to be taken seriously. Whether you’re hurt or see a loved one pass away from a fall, you have a right to be heard.