Boogie Board Injuries: Christopher Schwarzenegger Accident Should Bring Spotlight to Dangers of Boogie Board Serious Injury

The 13-year-old son of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Schriver, Christopher Schwarzenegger, was released from the hospital last night after suffering serious injuries while boogie boarding near Malibu.

Life-threatening injuries from Boogie Board accident

Schwarzenegger was reported to have suffered multiple broken bones and a collapsed lung - and spent several days in the Intensive Care Unit - after he had a bad spill on his boogie board while boogieboarding, crashing head-first into an object on the beach.

Boogie Board Injuries Are Often Serious - Especially for Teens

Boogie boards are popular here in Miami, as well as on most Florida beaches, and elsewhere around the world where ocean waves beckon. However, boogie boards are also well-known among injury experts -- medical experts, legal experts -- as being dangerous, especially for teenagers. Consider the 2002 discussion by Australian medical researchers on the likelihood that children and adolescents who ride boogie boards are especially vulnerable to severe abdominal injuries.

What To Do If Boogie Board Accident Happens To Your Loved One

If your day at the beach takes an unexpected turn because of a boogieboard accident, then remember to remain calm, and get medical help for the victim as soon as possible. Call 911, and be aware of the possibility of multiple broken bones or injured internal organs before attempting any type of movement of the injured person. Ask for directives from the 911 operator on how best to help the victim until Emergency Medical Care arrives.

It is also important, from a legal perspective, to document the scene as soon as possible. Have someone take photographs of the boogie board (is it cracked?) as well as the state of the beach (is it littered with debris?) and the height of the waves. Take the names and contact information from those who witnessed what has just happened.

It may sound callous, but having the facts as soon as possible can mean all the difference when an insurance claim is filed and an adjuster begins questioning whether or not coverage is available, etc.

By Bryant Esquenazi on July 26, 2011 2:36 PM

Sports Injuries Can Be Serious, Even Deadly: Jury Awards $10 Million in Wrongful Death of Florida College Football Player UCF's Ereck Plancher

Last week, an Orlando Jury Awarded $10 Million to the Parents of a College Freshman Who Died During Football Practice at the University of Central Florida

Ereck Plancher was only 19 years old when he died during a football practice (he was a wide receiver) at the University of Central Florida and last week, the jury came back with a $10 million verdict in the wrongful death personal injury lawsuit filed by Mr. and Mrs. Plancher against the University of Central Florida Athletics Association. The jury, however, did not award any punitive damages.

It has been reported that the jurors did not award any punitive damages because there was insufficient evidence that the school's football coach withheld water from Plancher as well as keeping team trainers from the boy after he had collapsed in an off-season workout designed to build the players up before the actual football season begins.

The National Center for Sports Safety keeps statistics on American kids who are injured or killed during sporting events every year, and according to their site (sourcing to Safe Kids USA):

• Over 3,500,000 kids aged 14-18 are injured while playing sports each year with injuries that are serious enough to need professional medical treatment
• Almost a fourth (21%) of all traumatic brain injuries suffered by kids in the United States each year are the result of sport injuries
• Sixty-two percent (62%) of injuries sustained during organized sports happen during practices and not the official games, even though 33% of parents don't take practices as seriously as games and don't take the same safety precautions for practice.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that in the past decade, 19 college football players have died while participating in offseason conditioning drills.

Of course, the University will appeal the Plancher verdict, and it may be years before the family actually sees any money from this case. And if you find this cruel and heartless, you are not alone: CBS News Commentator Gregg Doyel has spoken for many when he has labeled the University, where the young man died under their watchful eye, shameless.

Lessons for Parents of Kids Playing School Sports From the Ereck Plancher Lawsuit

For parents in Florida and across the country, it's time to take heed of the jury verdict in the Ereck Plancher lawsuit and recognize that kids need protection during practices as well as games at any school sporting event. This doesn't just apply to football, and it doesn't just apply to college-level competition.

However, it's also important to recognize this country's organized sporting industry and the importance of sports to school districts as well as colleges and universities. There's money to be made, and profits to be protected.

Which means that if a child is tragically injured or killed when he or she is practicing a sport or playing a game, then the parents may have a long, hard fight to get justice: they, too, may face a "shameful" appeal.

It's always shocking when deep pocket defendants try and avoid responsibility for their actions because of monetary concerns, but it's especially true when children have been the victims. Something that personal injury lawyers, unfortunately, see happen all too often in this country today.

By Bryant Esquenazi on July 12, 2011 11:23 AM