PHILADELPHIA – Parties on opposite sides of a case involving a plaintiff claiming to have lost his right leg in an accident at a Berks County scrap metal plant are arguing over the proper venue for the case.
Kenneth McLendon of Reading filed suit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas on Aug. 13 versus AMG Resources Corporation, of Pittsburgh.
As described in the litigation, AMG Resources is “one of the world’s largest processors and marketers of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metal and leading supplier of prime and secondary steel products," and processes more than one million tons of scrap annually at its 12 facilities in the United States.
One of which is located in the Berks County town of Temple, where the incident connected to the lawsuit allegedly took place.
“Here, the defendant failed to ensure that the scrap metal processes employed at the Royal Green, LLC facility were in a reasonably safe condition for persons lawfully upon the premises, such as plaintiff, Kenneth McLendon,” the suit states.
“The subject ‘conveyor belt’ can be defined as follows: The instant conveyor belt is a large, inclined belt conveyor used to elevate and transfer shredded scrap metal in a scrap metal processing plant. The conveyor was driven through a head pulley at the top end. The tail pulley was at the bottom end of the conveyor in a below ground level room beneath a shredder. A ladder and passageways allowed access to the bottom end of the conveyor by workers. The in-running nip hazard between the tail pulley and the conveyor belt was a hazard to the workers.”
The suit states that due to the strength of the components and power of the conveyor drive, the nip hazard would be very dangerous to anyone who came into contact with it – and it was allegedly not safeguarded to prevent worker access while the device was in operation, allegedly due to the defendant’s negligence.
“On or about July 11, 2018, plaintiff was in the course and scope of his employment, when, due to the negligence and wrongdoing of defendant AMG Resources and the defective condition of a conveyor belt which led to a shredding machine at the aforesaid facility, suddenly and without warning, the plaintiff’s right leg became entangled with the conveyor belt, thereby causing a traumatic amputation of his right leg and further causing him to suffer severe and grievous injuries,” the lawsuit reads.
In preliminary objections filed Sept. 13, counsel for AMG Resources sought transfer of the action to Berks County since the plaintiff resides there and the alleged incident took place there.
Through an answer to those same objections filed by McLendon’s counsel on Oct. 2, it denied the defendant’s arguments wholesale as conclusions of law and continued to claim that venue for the matter is proper in Philadelphia County.
For a lone count of negligence, the plaintiff is seeking damages in excess of $50,000, plus interest, costs of suit and reasonable attorneys’ fees as the Court may deem adequate, just and proper under the circumstances.
The plaintiff is represented by Brandon A. Swartz, Bryan M. Ferris and Maria K. McGinty-Ferris of Swartz Culleton, in Newtown.
The defendant is represented by John J. Delany III and Sara Labashosky of Delany McBride, in Philadelphia.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 180800907
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com