Mechanic says tire blew up in his face

MARTINSBURG – A Virginia mechanic and his parents are suing his employer over an injury he suffered when a large tire exploded as he tried to mount it.

Christopher Tyler Long and parents Christopher and Edy filed a lawsuit June 11 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia against Hardy County companies M&M Transportation and Miller & Sons Auto and Truck Repair.

Long says he wasn’t properly trained to mount large tires and was injured while doing so on March 3. He was a mechanic at M&M.

“The plaintiff’s schooling related solely to auto mechanics; therefore, the plaintiff had not received any schooling regarding trucks and, more specifically, had not received any schooling regarding the process of mounting large truck tires,” the complaint says.

“The defendant, M&M, knew that the plaintiff was young and inexperienced; nevertheless, it never provided any instruction or safety training to the plaintiff regarding mounting large truck tires.”

Long says he was dispatched to repair a truck tire in Romney on March 3, but he was not provided with a restraining device while doing so.

During the course of the process, the tire exploded and pieces of tire and rim struck him at a high velocity, he said.

Because M&M acted with deliberate intent, M&M’s Workers’ Compensation immunity is overcome and it is legally liable for his injuries, the complaint says.

“A specific unsafe working condition existed in the workplace which presented a high degree of risk and a strong probability of serious injury or death,” the complaint says.

Long suffered an orbital fracture, closed skull fracture, ruptured globe of the right eye, facial fractures and lacerations, fracture of the maxillary sinus and an intraparenchymal hemorrhage of the brain, he says.

His parents have suffered annoyance, aggravation, inconvenience and emotional distress and missed work to provide for their son, the complaint says.

The plaintiffs also seek punitive damages. They are represented by Christopher J. Regan and Geoffrey C. Brown of Bordas & Bordas in Wheeling.

From the West Virginia Record: Reach John O’Brien at jobrienwv@gmail.com.