Greenberg Streich Injury Lawyers Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit Over Fatal Oilfield Catwalk Incident at Chevron Drilling Site

Greenberg Streich Injury Lawyers, a Houston-based personal injury and wrongful death firm, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Harris County, Texas, on behalf of the family of an oilfield worker who was killed at a Chevron-operated drilling site near Jal, New Mexico. The worker died on May 16, 2026, when a hydraulic catwalk activated without warning and crushed him. He leaves behind a spouse and four minor children.

The lawsuit names five defendants: Chevron Corporation, Chevron U.S.A. Inc., Forum Energy Technologies, Inc., Patterson-UTI Drilling Company, LLC, Signal Safety Services, Inc., and Ally Consulting, LLC. According to the petition, the hydraulic catwalk, manufactured by Houston-based Forum Energy Technologies, was defectively designed and manufactured, and it activated after contact with a pedestal, giving the worker no opportunity to move clear. Chevron, as site operator, and Ally Consulting, which placed a superintendent on location, allegedly failed to maintain a safe worksite. Signal Safety Services provided wellsite safety consultants. The petition further claims that the worker's employer, Patterson-UTI, acted with gross negligence and intentional conduct that contributed to his death.

Jal sits in Lea County on the Texas border, inside the Permian Basin—one of the most dangerous oilfield corridors in the country. According to CDC data, nearly 40 percent of all oilfield fatalities nationwide occur in the Permian, and oilfield workers face a fatality rate roughly seven times the national average across all occupations. Struck-by and caught-between accidents, the category that covers crush injuries from mechanized equipment like hydraulic catwalks, remain among the leading causes of those deaths.

"A wife lost her husband and four children lost their father because of the unsafe actions taken by people out there," said Matt Greenberg, co-founding attorney at Greenberg Streich Injury Lawyers. "Cases like this one aren't usually about one single company, or even a single mistake. Our job is to find out exactly where the system broke down and to make sure this family is not left to carry the cost of it alone."

Greenberg Streich's attorneys have years of experience litigating catastrophic injury and wrongful death claims against oilfield operators, drilling contractors, and equipment manufacturers, including a $20 million result in an oilfield burn injury case. The firm represents oilfield injury and wrongful death victims throughout Texas and in cases connected to Texas-based defendants.

This lawsuit underscores the persistent safety challenges in the oil and gas industry, particularly in the Permian Basin, where the high concentration of drilling activity correlates with elevated fatality rates. The outcome could influence safety protocols and liability standards for equipment manufacturers and operators across the state.