Railroad worker injuries are covered under the Federal Employees Liability Act which requires that a railroad maintains their fleet, ensuring that their trains are in good working order and free of defects. If a railroad does not comply with these standards, they may be liable for injuries to their workers. Damages railroad workers may receive include medical treatments, present and future lost wages and mental trauma. An injury on the railway can range from a minor sprain to a spinal injury so severe that it leads to death. Some of the most common injuries that affect railway workers are head trauma, knee injuries, back injuries, neck injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, brain trauma or spinal cord injuries. The Federal Employees Liability Act protects railroad workers and others as diverse as clerical employees whose day-to-day functions do not directly involve trains or outdoor activity.
Fort Gay is a town in Wayne County, West Virginia, along the Tug Fork and Big Sandy Rivers. The town adjoins Louisa, Kentucky. The population was 819 at the 2000 census. Originally chartered in 1875 as Cassville. Its name was changed to Fort Gay in 1932, at the instigation of Wardy Lovely, who was a member of the city council as well as a local educator. The story goes that he was fed up with local wags smearing mud on the initial C from city signs, changing it to "assville". Name selected because of the location prior to the Civil War of a fort (Fort Gallup) on a hill at Louisa, Kentucky, opposite the community. Fort Gay is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 288,649. The Norfolk Southern Railway's Kenova District goes through the western edge of town.