COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA 

Present: Judges Benton, Coleman and Willis 

SAFEWAY, INC. 

 MEMORANDUM OPINION*

v. Record No. 0127-95-4 PER CURIAM 

 MAY 30, 1995 

HARMON E. BALL 

 FROM THE VIRGINIA WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION 

 (Charles P. Monroe; Mell, Brownell & Baker, 

 on brief), for appellant. Appellant 

 submitting on brief. 

 (Lawrence J. Pascal; Ashcraft & Gerel, on 

 brief), for appellee. Appellee submitting 

 on brief. 

 Safeway, Inc. appeals from a decision of the Workers' 

Compensation Commission awarding benefits to Harmon E. Ball. 

Safeway contends that the commission erred in finding that Ball 

proved that he sustained an injury by accident arising out of and 

in the course of his employment on December 18, 1993. Because 

the commission's decision is supported by credible evidence, we 

affirm the award. 

 On appeal, we view the evidence in the light most favorable 

to Ball, the party prevailing below. R.G. Moore Bldg. Corp. v. 

Mullins, 10 Va. App. 211, 212, 390 S.E.2d 788, 788 (1990). So 

viewed, the evidence proved that Ball was required to unload from 

a truck a large shipment of meat that was boxed and stacked to a 

height of nine feet. When Ball attempted to move a pallet on 

 

 *Pursuant to Code § 17-116.010 this opinion is not 

designated for publication. 
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which boxed meat was stacked, several boxes fell from the top of 

the stack onto Ball. He was standing between the pallet and the 

wall when at least three of the boxes struck him and knocked him 

to a sitting position in a confined space. The boxes which each 

weighed between fifty and ninety pounds landed on his lap and 

feet. Although Ball did not experience pain at the time of this 

incident, when he awoke the next morning, he experienced 

disabling back pain. 

 "In order to carry [the] burden of proving an 'injury by 

accident,' a claimant must prove that the cause of [the] injury 

was an identifiable incident or sudden precipitating event and 

that it resulted in an obvious sudden mechanical or structural 

change in the body." Morris v. Morris, 238 Va. 578, 589, 385 

S.E.2d 858, 865 (1989). The commission found that Ball's back 

condition, which first manifested itself the morning following 

the incident, was the result of boxes falling on him at work. 

Ball's testimony provides ample credible evidence to support the 

commission's finding. Thus, that finding is conclusive on this 

appeal. See James v. Capitol Steel Constr. Co., 8 Va. App. 512, 

515, 382 S.E.2d 487, 488 (1989). 

 The commission also considered the testimony of Ball's 

supervisor, Ball's recorded statement, and Safeway's First Report 

of Accident, and the commission resolved any conflicts in this 

evidence in favor of Ball. Moreover, the medical report by the 

attending physician, Dr. Jerry M. Hahn, provides credible 
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evidence that links the incident to medical causation. "In 

determining whether credible evidence exists, [this Court] does 

not retry the facts, reweigh the preponderance of the evidence, 

or make its own determination of the credibility of the 

witnesses." Wagner Enters., Inc., v. Brooks, 12 Va. App. 890, 

894, 407 S.E.2d 32, 35 (1991). 

 Finally, that Ball did not experience back pain until the 

morning after the incident is not fatal to his claim. "Morris 

[v. Morris, 238 Va. 578, 385 S.E.2d 858 (1989)] did not require a 

showing of immediate onset of the symptoms of the injury." 

Hercules, Inc. v. Gunther, 13 Va. App. 357, 364 n.2, 412 S.E.2d 

185, 189 n.2 (1991). 

 For these reasons, we affirm the commission's decision. 

 Affirmed.