Month: August 2007

Levine & Slavit Launches Radio Campaign

Following its successful television advertising campaign on New York Mets and Yankees games, Levine & Slavit has begun an advertising campaign on New York City based all-news radio station 1010 WINS.

Set to begin on August 27, 2007, the ad reads: “Many people are not prepared and dont know how to proceed when injured in an accident. The law firm of Levine & Slavit has been representing accident victims for 50 years, located in Manhattan with an additional office on Long Island. We handle cases in New York City and surrounding counties. If you have been injured through the negligence … Read the rest

Scaffold Accident at the former Deutsche Bank Building in NYC Comes Just Days After Fatal Fire

Two firefighters were injured Thursday, August 23rd, 2007, when a forklift fell from scaffolding and crashed into a shed at the former Deutsche Bank building in Manhattan. Both firefighters were taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital. Sources said both of the firefighters sustained serious head injuries.

Fire officials said a tool fell off the scaffold and landed atop a sidewalk shed that the firefighters were standing under. The force of the impact caused a helmet one of the firefighters was wearing to crack. The fire department said that a construction worker entered an elevator at the work site at about 2 … Read the rest

Another Week, Another Recall of Toys

Mattel, the world’s largest toy company and the maker of Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars, yesterday announced the biggest recall in its history. The company said it was recalling 436,000 Chinese-made die-cast toy cars depicting the character Sarge from the animated film Cars because they are covered with lead paint.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advises consumers to immediately take the recalled toys away from children and contact Mattel. Consumers will need to return the product to receive a replacement toy.

At the same time, the toy maker said it was recalling 18.2 million other toys because their … Read the rest

Medicare to Stop Paying Hospitals Extra to Treat Their Preventable Errors

Medicare, in a significant policy change, will no longer pay the extra costs of treating preventable errors, injuries and infections that occur in hospitals, which the government says could save lives and millions of dollars.

Under the new rule, effective October 1, 2007, and applicable to discharges occurring on or after that date, Medicare will not pay hospitals for the costs of treating certain conditions that could reasonably have been prevented. Significantly, under the new rules, the hospital cannot bill the beneficiary for any charges associated with the hospital-acquired complication.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that patients … Read the rest

Damage Found on Throgs Neck Bridge During Inspection Began Before Minneapolis Bridge Collapse

New York State officials announced, on August 9, 2007, that some damage to the Throgs Neck Bridge showing advanced wear and tear was found during a routine biannual inspection that began prior to last week’s Minneapolis bridge collapse. As a result, restrictions to the access to the bridge by over-sized rigs will be increased. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (“MTA”) said the bridge is safe for drivers.

To ease the bridge’s deterioration, the state is rescinding a two-year program that allowed certain trucks weighing 105,000 pounds to travel on the center lanes at 30 mph at any time of day. Those … Read the rest

Mayor Bloomberg Serves Jury Duty

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg reported for jury duty at the New York State Supreme Court, New York County,on August 6th, 2007. He was called for voir dire along with others into a courtroom where attorneys were set to begin picking a jury for a wrongful death lawsuit brought by a woman whose husband had died after years of operating a printing press that attorneys said contained asbestos in its brakes. The Mayor was not selected for that case.

Mayor Bloomberg returned to the Manhattan courthouse the following day where he was considered as a juror in a personal … Read the rest

New York City Council Committee on Consumer Affairs Holds Hearing Into Cause of Con Ed Steam Pipe Explosion on July 18, 2007

A hearing was held before the Committee on Consumer Affairs of the New York City Council August 7th, 2007, into what caused the Consolidated Edison steam pipe explosion in Midtown Manhattan on July 18th. Council members were exasperated by the failure of Con Eds chairman and chief executive, Kevin M. Burke, to appear at the hearing, particularly in light of Mr. Burkes handling of the nine-day outage that crippled the Astoria section of Queens in July of 2006.

Council members were also decidedly unhappy with the inability of the person Con Ed did send, William Longhi, its senior vice … Read the rest

Lead Paint Prompts Mattel to Recall Nearly 1 Million Toys

Mattel is recalling 967,000 toys, including 83 products featuring Sesame Street and Nickelodeon characters, because the products are covered in lead paint. The products are sold in retailers including Wal-Mart, Target and Toys “R” Us.

More than 300,000 tainted toys, which include Elmo Tub Sub, the Dora the Explorer Backpack, and the Giggle Gabber, and may have a date code from 109-7LF to 187-7LF, have been bought by consumers in the United States. The toys were manufactured in a factory in China, whose factories have recently been sources of poisonous pet food, dangerous car tires, and lead paint on Thomas … Read the rest