Seaman Files Suit After Boat Capsizes

A man has filed a personal injury suit against the company that owned a boat that he was working on when it capsized.

According to the suit Willie Sigler filed in Texas’ Jefferson County District Court on May 1, he was hired by Omega Protein Inc. to work as a seaman aboard the F/V Galveston Bay and/or one of its purse boats on September 5, 2007.

The suit says the company maintains a fleet of fishing vessels and plants for production of fatty acid supplements.

Sigler claims that while he was performing the work he had been assigned while the boat was in navigable waters in the Gulf of Mexico, the purse boat he was aboard capsized, causing him to suffer severe and disabling injuries.

Sigler claims that, in addition to the injuries, the incident caused him to incur medical costs and experience past and future physical pain, suffering physical impairment, lost earnings lost household services, disfigurement, and mental anguish.

Sigler alleges that the boat capsized due to it not being seaworthy and the Omega employees’ failure to carry out their duties and responsibilities.

Sigler also claims the company failed to pay him maintenance and cure benefits, which he was due after the incident.

The suit also includes a request for discovery.

Sigler seeks unspecified damages.