Summary
In General Motors Corporation v. Hall, 1956, 93 Ga. App. 181, 91 S.E.2d 57, compensation was allowed by reason of a heart attack on the premises precipitated by climbing 24 stairs on the premises on the way to the work position of the employee, although he had had an attack at home 4 hours before.
Summary of this case from Jakes v. Union CarbideOpinion
35832.
DECIDED JANUARY 6, 1956.
Workmen's compensation. Before Judge Shaw. Fulton Superior Court. May 27, 1955.
Marshall, Greene Neely, Burt DeRieux, for plaintiff in error.
Harry E. Monroe, W. Alford Wall, contra.
1. Where an employee, after arriving at the place of his employment, and within a reasonable time before his work is to begin, exerts himself in performing an act incident and necessary to his employment as a result of which he suffers a heart attack, he sustains an accident arising out of and in the course of his employment.
2. There was sufficient opinion testimony, combined with the facts and circumstances of the attack, to authorize a finding that the exertion of the employee in climbing the stairs at his place of employment immediately precipitated the attack from which he died.
DECIDED JANUARY 6, 1956.
Mrs. Minnie Hall seeking compensation for the death of her husband filed a claim with the State Board of Workmen's Compensation against his employer, General Motors Corporation, Fisher Body Division. It appears from the evidence that Mr. Hall had been so employed over a period of years, his work being confined to the assembly line.
On the morning of February 18, 1954, there was evidence that Mr. Hall arose from an uneventful night of sleep at home with his wife and family, and on this morning the wife was not feeling well and Mr. Hall got up and prepared his own breakfast, ate his breakfast, and during the course of the meal he conversed with his daughter-in-law. Her testimony is to the effect that there was nothing unusual about Mr. Hall's appearance and he made no complaint of feeling bad. He left the house at his usual time and one of his co-employees picked him up and drove him to the employer's plant, where he entered at the regular entrance, that is the employees' entrance, and the evidence disclosed that immediately in the lobby of his employer's place of business there were two flights of stairs. There was some evidence to the effect that these stairs contained twenty-four steps. Immediately upon arriving on the top floor, the deceased employee checked a time clock, which was customary for the employees who worked on the assembly line. The evidence further reveals that the starting time of the assembly line was 6:45 a. m., and immediately after entering the building and after climbing the steps the employee was seen to be holding his chest by a table at his position on the assembly line, where he was profusely sweating, of a pale and ashen color, and complained to his co-employees of pain in his chest. The evidence further shows that this was shortly before the bell rang for the beginning of work on the assembly line, where all the employees were required to be when said assembly line began operation, there being some evidence that it was one minute before starting time, and other evidence that it was three or four minutes before starting time. There was testimony that the deceased was seen to go in the direction of the first-aid room and an employee of Fisher Body Division, who stated that he was an assistant to the personnel director, took Mr. Hall to his home upon Mr. Hall's request. The employee testified that he was positive that Mr. Hall had checked the time clock and also testified that Mr. Hall had told him that he had suffered a pain in his chest some time around three o'clock that same morning. A doctor who saw the employee on the morning he was stricken corroborated this testimony by stating that Mr. Hall made a similar statement to him.
Immediately upon arriving at his home, Mr. Hall complained that he was having severe pain in his chest and was smothering, and the pain radiated into both arms, whereupon he was carried by one of his grown daughters in the family automobile to the family doctor, who was not available, and they took Mr. Hall to the office of Dr. T. Luther Byrd, which appeared to be close by. The evidence reveals that after a preliminary examination by Dr. Byrd, the employee was placed in a wheel chair and immediately transferred to the Georgia Baptist Hospital, the evidence being undisputed that Dr. Byrd attended this employee in his last illness, beginning February 18, 1954, until February 23, 1954, at which time Mr. Hall died, and Dr. Byrd gave as his diagnosis for the cause of his death, a coronary thrombosis.
The State Board of Workmen's Compensation entered an award in favor of the claimant, and on appeal the judge of the superior court affirmed the award. The respondent excepted and the case is here for review.
In this opinion the plaintiff in error or General Motors Corporation is conveniently referred to as General Motors or the Motor Company, the defendant in error as the claimant and her deceased husband as the employee.
General Motors assigns the judgment of the superior court affirming the award of the State Board of Workmen's Compensation as error, for the reason that there was not sufficient competent evidence in the record to authorize the award. The motor company asserts that the evidence did not show the employee's death was caused by an accident occurring in the course of his employment for the reason that when he suffered the heart attack resulting in his death he had not begun his day's work.
There was evidence that the employee had climbed the flight of steps leading from a lower floor to that on which the time clock was situated, at about three to five minutes before the time for him to actively begin his day's work on the assembly line, and had "checked in" for that purpose when the heart attack occurred. In Employers Insurance Co. of Ala. v. Bass, 81 Ga. App. 306 ( 58 S.E.2d 516) it is held that where an employee was, at the time he was accidentally injured, on the employer's premises and performing acts incidental and preparatory to the work that he was employed to do, and at such time was permitted by his employer to be upon the premises, the injury was in the course of his employment. So in this case we are constrained to hold that the evidence supported the finding that the employee's heart attack was an accident within the contemplation of the Workmen's Compensation Law, suffered by the employee in the course of his employment.
2. The Motor Company further contends that the evidence did not authorize the award of compensation, and therefore the judgment of the superior court affirming it was error for the reason that the proof introduced upon the hearing of the case before the compensation board conclusively showed that the heart attack which resulted in the employee's death was not an accident arising out of his employment.
The claimant introduced evidence showing that the deceased employee's death resulted after and as a result of his ascending the flight of stairs preparatory to entering upon the duties of his employment. The evidence authorized a finding that it was necessary for him to be where he was on the premises of the employer at the time of this attack in order to begin work when the assembly line was put in motion. Employers Insurance Co. of Alabama v. Bass, supra. The fact that he had a pre-existing heart condition does not preclude recovery. Lumbermen's Mutual Casualty Co. v. Griggs, 190 Ga. 277 ( 9 S.E.2d 84). The fact that he had had an attack, which indicated that the coronary thrombosis was in existence at 3 o'clock on the morning before he went to work on February 18 does not preclude recovery, in that the testimony of Dr. L. Minor Blackford is sufficient to show that the climbing of the steps on the premises of the employer immediately precipitated the attack. Dr. Blackford testified: "Now, as I understand your question this man had not had any — only acute symptoms until he climbed these twenty steps. Now he climbed the twenty steps and he had severe pain and after that he got worse and worse and died a few days later. I don't think there is any question that the climbing of the steps produced the pain that came on while he was climbing those steps. Now, I have been in so many arguments, I still show regard for my fellow man, when a man falls dead when he is engaged in exertion that the precipitation — immediate precipitating cause is that. Now, I am not sure whether pain that came on when he was climbing the steps, pain which was continuous resulted in his death three or four days later. I am in some doubt about that. I think that the climbing of the steps brought on the pain. Q. Well, do you think the climbing of the steps would aggravate a diseased heart condition; is that good for a diseased heart condition? A. No, I don't think it is; . . . I think when he started climbing those steps he should have stopped as soon as the pain came on. Q. My question to you was, would climbing twenty-odd steps have any bearing on a man with a diseased heart or could that exertion bring on the attack that this man died from? A. Now, that exertion certainly could bring it on and was immediately responsible for the pain that came on, and while he was walking up those steps, and I would be inclined to think the precipitating factor — it was the precipitating factor."
Since this testimony is sufficient to show that the climbing of the stairs was the immediate precipitating cause, it matters not what combined with it to produce the attack. Maryland Casualty Co. v. Dixon, 83 Ga. App. 172 ( 63 S.E.2d 272). Accordingly, a contrary finding should not be predicated upon the testimony of two witnesses who had conversations with the employee between the time of this attack and his death, the substance of which was that he had awakened about 3 o'clock on the morning of the day on which the attack occurred with severe chest pain, shortness of breath, radiating pain in the arms and slow pulse, but that, according to one of them, he said it was intermittent, and according to the other he said it "eased off", and in any event the employee's condition improved to the extent that before going to work he got up, prepared his own breakfast, made no mention of feeling ill to any members of his family, and went on at the usual time. A finding is authorized that the employee, if he had a heart attack at 3, recovered from this attack sufficiently to go on about his daily duties, and that while climbing the steps he suffered another fatal attack.
Judgment affirmed. Felton, C. J., Gardner, P. J., Townsend, Carlisle, Nichols, JJ., concur.