Reynolds v. George & Hoyt
| Decision Date | 12 November 1941 |
| Docket Number | 45684. |
| Citation | 300 N.W. 530,230 Iowa 1267 |
| Parties | REYNOLDS v. GEORGE & HOYT et al. |
| Court | Iowa Supreme Court |
Appeal from District Court, Poweshiek County; J. G. Patterson Judge.
An award by the industrial commissioner of workmen's compensation in a death case was affirmed by the district court. Defendants appeal.
Affirmed.
Hallagan, Fountain, Steward & Cless, of Des Moines, for appellants.
Tomasek & Vogel, of Grinnell, for appellee.
This is a proceeding under the Workmen's Compensation Law, brought by the widow of George J. Reynolds against his employer and its insurance carrier on account of his death. The industrial commissioner, upon review, affirmed an award of compensation. This decision was affirmed by the district court, and the employer and its insurer have appealed. The sole issue was whether the death arose out of and in the course of the employment.
Aside from the medical opinion testimony the record is without serious conflict. Decedent was 39 years of age, a strong and vigorous man, apparently in excellent health and with no record of ailments or symptoms thereof. He was employed as a plumber, at which trade he had continuously worked for his employer for some years. At 10 a. m. Friday, November 25, 1938, in the course of said employment, decedent and his helper were lowering into a well a 35-foot pipe and cylinder, weighing 193 pounds. When the top of the pipe had been lowered to the top of the well pit, they kneeled upon planks which had been laid across the pit and continued to lower the pipe until its top was 12 or 18 inches below the planks. Decedent and his helper were then supporting the weight of the pipe with pipe wrenches by leaning over and reaching down into the pit from their crouching positions as far as they could stretch. Because of difficulties encountered in fastening the pipe at the bottom, they were required to support its weight from this strained position for 5 or 7 minutes. During this time decedent exclaimed: " Well for gosh sakes, put something on, this is getting awful heavy." When the pipe was finally fastened, decedent straightened up, threw his hands to his head and exclaimed, " My God, what hit me?" and staggered off the plank to the ground. He also said, " I never had anything like this come over me before," and also complained of a headache. His lips turned blue, he was pale and perspiring; beads of sweat were on his brow; his breathing was fast and irregular. After a few minutes rest he proceeded with the work and also did light work that afternoon and the next day(Saturday). On Friday evening he complained he had had a hard day and did not feel well. He was unusually quiet, was pale and his lips were blue. On Saturday he was very pale and was drowsy after his noonday meal. He ate little on Saturday evening, was pale and was blue around the mouth, was unusually quiet and drowsy. Sunday morning he took only a cup of coffee for breakfast. He frequently complained of a choked or smothering feeling in his chest and that he could not get his breath. Later he and his family drove to the home of relatives for dinner. Upon arriving there he said he did not feel well. He had another attack of the smothering feeling and shortness of breath. At 12:30 he ate an ordinary meal but ate no dessert. While sitting at the table he suffered another attack and went upstairs to lie down. He had difficulty in getting his breath, was very pale and blue around the mouth and complained of pain in his chest. Shortly thereafter he was taken in an automobile to see a doctor but collapsed in the automobile and was dead when the doctor saw him about 4 p. m. His body was embalmed and buried. On April 12, 1939, it was exhumed and an autopsy held.
The autopsy, performed by Dr. Glomset and witnessed by other doctors, disclosed that the brain and various organs of the torso were normal, except for some congestion of the lungs kidneys, bladder and spleen and except for the heart, which showed a patch of arterio sclerosis in a branch of the left coronary artery, a dark clot of blood over the orifice of the left coronary artery and a small hemorrhage in the heart muscle surrounding this artery. It is not contended this patch of arterio sclerosis had any immediate connection with the death. Dr. Glomset, a witness for appellants, testified, in his opinion, death was caused by the blood clot stopping up the mouth of the left coronary artery; that the blood clot was caused by the hemorrhage;...
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