Case Name: Douglas P. FAULK, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. POWER RIG DRILLING COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee, Lamb Industries, Inc., Defendant-Appellant, The Northern Assurance Company of America, Intervenor-Appellee, Odell Vinson Contractors, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee, Employers Fire Insurance Company, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee
Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Louisiana
Decision Date: 1977-06-30
Citations: 348 So. 2d 219
Docket Number: No. 6064
Parties: Douglas P. FAULK, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. POWER RIG DRILLING COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee, Lamb Industries, Inc., Defendant-Appellant, The Northern Assurance Company of America, Intervenor-Appellee, Odell Vinson Contractors, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee, Employers Fire Insurance Company, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee.
Judges: Before DOMENGEAUX, GUIDRY and ROGERS, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 348
Pages: 219–224

Head Matter:
Douglas P. FAULK, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. POWER RIG DRILLING COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee, Lamb Industries, Inc., Defendant-Appellant, The Northern Assurance Company of America, Intervenor-Appellee, Odell Vinson Contractors, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee, Employers Fire Insurance Company, Third-Party Defendant-Appellee.
No. 6064.
Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.
June 30, 1977.
Rehearing Denied Aug. 1, 1977.
Writ Dismissed Oct. 26, 1977.
Mouton, Roy, Carmouche & Hailey by John A. Bivins, Lafayette, for defendant-appellant.
McHale & Bufkin by Louis D. Bufkin, Lake Charles, for plaintiff-appellee.
Plauché, Smith, Hebert & Nieset by Allen L. Smith, Jr., Lake Charles, for third-party defendant-appellee.
Brame, Bergstedt & Brame by Joe A. Brame, Lake Charles, for defendant-appel-lee.
Davidson, Meaux, Sonnier & Roy by J. J. Davidson, III, Lafayette, for defendant-ap-pellee.
Ryder & Deshotels by Alfred Ray Ryder, Oberlin, for defendant-appellee.
Before DOMENGEAUX, GUIDRY and ROGERS, JJ.

Opinion:
DOMENGEAUX, Judge.
This is a suit for personal injuries arising out of an oil rig accident which occurred in Allen Parish on February 19, 1974. Douglas P. Faulk sued Power Rig Drilling Company, and Lamb Industries, Inc. The Northern Assurance Company of America intervened. Lamb Industries, Inc. third-partied Faulk's employer, Odell Vinson Contractors, Inc. and its insurer, Employers Fire Insurance Company. Before the case went to trial Faulk settled with Power Rig and Northern Assurance, Power Rig's workmen's compensation insurer.
The case was tried before a judge, who held for plaintiff and against Lamb Industries, Inc., in the amount of $834,763.89. Third party demands by Lamb against Odell Vinson were rejected. Lamb appealed. Plaintiff answered the appeal, asking for an increase in the award. We affirm the decision of the district judge.
Early in the morning of February 19, 1974, around two or three o'clock, a. m., Douglas P. Faulk was working as the pusher of a roustabout crew at Power Rig No. 12, a well owned by Tesoro Petroleum Company. Power Rig Drilling Company was the company assigned to do the drilling. Lamb Industries, Inc., provided the casing crew which lowered the casing (pipe) into the well. Faulk's roustabout crew, employees of Odell Vinson Contractors, Inc., were unloading the casing from the pipe rack situated at the foot of the rig. The catwalk or wooden platform was bordered on each side by pipe racks. The pipe was rolled by Faulk's crew onto the catwalk, one joint of pipe at a time. Once a joint of pipe was placed on the catwalk; Faulk would tie on an air hoist line so that the pipe could be lifted into the V-door, a metal slide which leaned diagonally against the rig floor. A stairway leading up to the rig floor abutted the V-door. After the pipe was hoisted into the V-door, one of the Lamb Industries casing crew, Leeward Meche or Eugene M. Meaux, would remove the air hoist line and tie on the pickup line, which is attached to a travelling block. Upon a signal from Meche or Meaux, who were standing on the rig floor, the pipe would be hoisted up and out of the V-door and down into the hole to be connected to the previous joint of casing. The signal consisted of taking up the slack in the pickup line.
In the meantime, the air hoist line would be lowered back down to the catwalk where Faulk would tie it on to the next joint of casing.
This was a rhythmical procedure which lasted from one and one-half to three minutes for each joint. Occasionally a delay would occur and the pipe would stay in the V-door for a little longer period. On just one such occasion, while the previous joint lay in the V-door, Faulk began to tie on the air hoist line to the next joint. While Faulk was bent over in an awkward position near the above mentioned stairway, the pipe in the V-door was lifted by the driller. It slipped and hit the pipe Faulk was working on, sending Faulk head first into the metal hand rail of the stairway. Faulk's skull was crushed.
OPINION
The trial court concluded "that the sole and proximate cause of Faulk's injury was the negligence of Leeward Meche". Meche was the Lamb employee who stood on the rig floor and gave the signal for the driller, Franks, to hoist the pipe out of the V-door. The trial court further opined "that Meche had the duty to ascertain that Faulk was not in the way before he signalled Franks".
There is conflicting testimony as to this alleged duty of Meche. Mr. Buckalew, the Power Rig toolpusher who supervised the operation, and the only eyewitness to the accident, testified that it was Meche's duty to make sure the catwalk was clear before giving his signal.
On the other hand, Mr. Stockstill, defendant's expert on drilling operations, said Meche had no responsibility to act as a lookout. He testified that Meche must take care for his own safety, and that Faulk had no reason to be where he was at the time of the accident.
Mr. Begnot, the plaintiff's expert driller, contradicted Mr. Stockstill by saying it is the duty of the man in the V-door to act as a lookout.
Where there is a conflict in the testimony, reasonable evaluations of credibility and inferences of fact should not be disturbed upon review. Canter v. Koehring Company, 283 So.2d 716 (La.1973). We see no reason here to disturb the trial court's findings of a legal duty on Meche's part to act as a lookout under the facts of this case. Faulk was in no position to see the driller nor could the driller see Faulk. Meche was the only person able to prevent this accident as he could see both Faulk and the driller. We feel that he could have taken the small amount of time needed to check the catwalk before giving his signal without unduly delaying the operation or risking his own safety.
The trial court also discussed Faulk's possible contributory negligence, as follows:
"First of all, the court was not presented with any evidence that Faulk was doing anything other than his routine work or that he was in a position other than that which the performance of his work required of him . . ."
We reiterate that this was a rhythmical procedure in which Faulk relied on Meehe's signal to keep the operation flowing safely and smoothly. In order for plaintiff to be held contributorily negligent, the defendants must show that plaintiff not only had knowledge of the danger, but also that he appreciated the danger under all the surrounding conditions and circumstances. In light of the fact that Faulk had been relying on Meche for some time and quite successfully so, we find no reason to find that he was aware of any danger. He was simply continuing his work as he had been doing for the preceding few hours.
We agree with the trial judge that defendant, who carries the burden of proof, has failed in his burden. Although the testimony of one expert indicated that Faulk was contributorily negligent, apparently the trial judge was not impressed that Faulk was doing anything other than what he was supposed to be doing at the time. Considering the paucity of evidence to prove this claim, we find no manifest error in the trial judge's finding of no contributory negligence.
The district judge continued:
"Even if it were decided that he negligently placed himself where he was when the pipe hit him, the conclusion that Meche's negligence was the sole and proximate cause of the accident is not altered. Faulk was in his perilous position before Meche signalled Franks. Meche, thus had the last clear chance to avoid the accident. Moses v. Commercial Standard Insurance Co. [La.App.], 174 So.2d 682."
Because we find no contributory negligence on Faulk's part, there is no need to discuss the "last clear chance" doctrine.
QUANTUM
Mr. Faulk's injuries were devastating. Doctor Foster, his surgeon and the primary treating physician, testified that he was quite surprised that plaintiff survived the operation on his skull and brain. Plaintiff stayed in the hospital for two months subsequent to the accident. He had lacerations of both frontal lobes of his brain, and is now missing one-fourth of the right frontal lobe. This injury has the same approximate effect as a frontal lobotomy. The part of his brain which was injured affects his personality, judgment, behavior, and ability to get along with people. The part of his brain which controls his reading, writing and motor skills was not injured. However, plaintiff's motor abilities have been affected because he is subject to grand mal epileptic seizures caused by his injury.
Plaintiff is severely depressed and emotionally unstable, partially because of his unhappiness with his physical appearance. He is blind in one eye, which is also horribly disfigured; he is severely scarred and has a plate in his head. The majority of the medical testimony indicates a great uncertainty that plaintiff will ever work again, especially because of his seizures. We conclude that the trial court did not err in finding plaintiff totally and permanently disabled.
Faulk was 24 years old at the time of the accident, was married and had children. (Since the accident he and his wife have separated due to Faulk's erratic behavior.) Faulk was earning $198.40 per week. He had a work life expectancy of 37.9 years. The actuary, Doctor Chisolm, valued Faulk's claim for future income loss at $494,018.41. The trial court, after considering many factors including inflation and productivity wage increases awarded $400,000.00 for lost future wages. We find no error in this award. See generally Economic Variables in Personal Injury Cases, Recent State Court Developments, Volume XXIV, Louisiana Bar Journal, Issue No. 2 (September 1976) for a discussion of factors used by our courts in deciding quantum and loss of future wages. For the earnings lost up to the time of trial the court awarded $20,448.39, in which we see no error. Medical expenses both past and future of $32,-555.50 were awarded.
For the extreme physical discomfort and disfigurement suffered by plaintiff the trial court concluded $175,000.00 would be adequate, and for his emotional distress the trial court awarded $200,000.00. Upon reviewing the record and the evidence of the severity of this injury, we cannot say the trial court erred. See Coco v. Winston Industries, Inc., 341 So.2d 332 (La.1977).
Plaintiff in his answer to the appeal requested that the award for loss of future wages be increased to $494,018.41, the value estimated by Doctor Chisolm. The district judge carefully analyzed the expert testimony presented by both sides, and our review thereof indicates that his award of $400,000.00 for that item was well within his discretionary powers.
For the above and foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court is affirmed. Costs are assessed against defendant-appellant, Lamb Industries, Inc.
AFFIRMED.
GUIDRY, J., dissents and assigns written reasons.
. The entire process of the casing operation was clarified by a 16 millimeter film admitted into evidence and viewed by the court.
. $25,000.00 of this had previously been awarded to the workmen's compensation insurer, Northern Assurance Company of America, by way of settlement.