Many people who slip and then fall only suffer minor injuries. Still, the risk is there for someone to suffer severe injuries if they lose their balance or traction and unexpectedly fall in a parking lot or business.
Understanding how a slip-and-fall could potentially lead to severe injuries can help you respond appropriately if you or someone you love falls and gets hurt on a section of messy sidewalk outside of a restaurant or in a puddle of spilled milk at the grocery store. The following are three ways in which a slip-and-fall incident might lead to severe injuries.
Someone turns or twists on their way to the ground
Broken bones are one of the more serious injuries that a person might suffer when they fall. Fractures come in many different forms, some of which are more severe than others.
A torsion or spiral fracture occurs when twisting or spinning motion leads to a fracture. If you try to catch yourself with your hand as you fall but turn to the side, that twisting motion might result in multiple breaks to the same bone. The end result might be a permanent loss of flexibility and strength and the need for surgery in order to recover.
Someone hits furniture, carts, vehicles or fixtures because they flail
It is a natural response to desperately try to regain your balance when you sense yourself falling. Many people will twist their bodies or move their arms and legs erratically to prevent a fall or protect themselves from the impact during a fault.
Unfortunately, flailing limbs could easily strike something nearby, possibly resulting in broken bones, soft tissue injuries or even severe wounds that bleed. Any time the skin breaks in such an event, there’s also the risk of infection.
A person falls so quickly that they hit their head
Most people who fall will have a half-second to try to catch themselves or grab onto something nearby to slow their rate of descent. Some people who fall aren’t that lucky.
Individuals who fall straight backward, for example, might strike their head on the floor or a wall. They could potentially suffer a traumatic brain injury with lifelong medical consequences.
Although anyone who gets into a slip-and-fall incident in a public space should report what happened to management, these three scenarios will likely necessitate medical evaluation and possibly an insurance claim.
