By Mark Reagan
Brownsville Herald
Staff Writer
Three Matamoros residents and a Brownsville resident are suing the City of Brownsville and the organizers of a binational race in March where a metal scaffold with a start banner fell into the crowd without warning for $1 million or more in damages.
Daniel Reglado, individually and as next of friend of D.A.R., a minor, and Cecilia P. Alonso, all of Matamoros, along with Brownsville resident Sylvia Vela, filed the lawsuit on Dec. 19 against Fundacion Teleton USA, Sistema Infantial Teleton USA, Sabas Lopez Jr. doing business as SRS Advertising and DG Entertainment, and the City of Brownsville.
The accident happened at the beginning of the Bi-National 10K & 5K Run, which started on the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley campus, when the metal structure fell striking multiple people.
(In March, El Rrun-Rrun published a post on the accident and identified the city worker said to have instructed the promoters to install a banner. We said:
"City crews under the direction of City of Brownsville Government Affairs Liaison Ramiro Gonzalez arrived with city workers and he directed them to place a large "start" banner on the structure.
According to the lawsuit, SRS Advertising and DG Entertainment was instructed to install the trusses and signage that fell and struck the plaintiffs.
Michael J. Blanchard, a San Antonio-based attorney who filed the lawsuit, argues in the litigation that the City of Brownsville is liable because Reglado, the minor, Alonso and Vela's injuries were caused by the trusses and signage that were allegedly set up in a manner that posed an unreasonable risk of which the city had actual knowledge.
"The City, moreover, only has immunity for its governmental acts," the lawsuit states. "The City's joint sponsorship and hosting of the race event was not a governmental act."
According to the lawsuit, a city employee installed the trusses and signage that fell.
"While acting within the scope of his or her employment, a City employee used the truss and signage to conduct the race event at issue in this lawsuit," the litigation states. "The use was negligent in that the use caused the trusses and signage to fall, prxoimately causing injuries and damages to Plaintiffs."
Reglado, the minor, Alonso and Vela further allege that Teleton and the City breached their duties by selecting "an incompetent person to install."
To read rest of article click on link: https://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/local/four-injured-in-bi-national-race-sue/article_e8b7d0dc-091d-11e9-a22a-2b3a9ed87922.html
Three Matamoros residents and a Brownsville resident are suing the City of Brownsville and the organizers of a binational race in March where a metal scaffold with a start banner fell into the crowd without warning for $1 million or more in damages.
Daniel Reglado, individually and as next of friend of D.A.R., a minor, and Cecilia P. Alonso, all of Matamoros, along with Brownsville resident Sylvia Vela, filed the lawsuit on Dec. 19 against Fundacion Teleton USA, Sistema Infantial Teleton USA, Sabas Lopez Jr. doing business as SRS Advertising and DG Entertainment, and the City of Brownsville.
The accident happened at the beginning of the Bi-National 10K & 5K Run, which started on the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley campus, when the metal structure fell striking multiple people.
(In March, El Rrun-Rrun published a post on the accident and identified the city worker said to have instructed the promoters to install a banner. We said:
"City crews under the direction of City of Brownsville Government Affairs Liaison Ramiro Gonzalez arrived with city workers and he directed them to place a large "start" banner on the structure.
And as the morning wore on, the wind began to blow stronger. The National Weather Service reported that before daybreak the wind speed was 21 miles per hour and increasing as daybreak approached. At race time, it is estimated that it had increased to more than 3 miles and hour. On that day, gusts reached speeds of nearly 42 miles per hour.
If there had been no banner installed on the scaffolding, workers believe, it would not have collapsed.
Instead, the wind gusts caught the "start" sign installed at Gonzalez's directions and several people were injured when it collapsed.
"It might as well have been a sail," said one of the runners. It was just too windy to have placed it then. There really was no need for it."
Local media reported that several runners said the metal structure fell as the race was about to begin.")
According to the lawsuit, SRS Advertising and DG Entertainment was instructed to install the trusses and signage that fell and struck the plaintiffs.
Michael J. Blanchard, a San Antonio-based attorney who filed the lawsuit, argues in the litigation that the City of Brownsville is liable because Reglado, the minor, Alonso and Vela's injuries were caused by the trusses and signage that were allegedly set up in a manner that posed an unreasonable risk of which the city had actual knowledge.
"The City, moreover, only has immunity for its governmental acts," the lawsuit states. "The City's joint sponsorship and hosting of the race event was not a governmental act."
According to the lawsuit, a city employee installed the trusses and signage that fell.
"While acting within the scope of his or her employment, a City employee used the truss and signage to conduct the race event at issue in this lawsuit," the litigation states. "The use was negligent in that the use caused the trusses and signage to fall, prxoimately causing injuries and damages to Plaintiffs."
Reglado, the minor, Alonso and Vela further allege that Teleton and the City breached their duties by selecting "an incompetent person to install."
To read rest of article click on link: https://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/local/four-injured-in-bi-national-race-sue/article_e8b7d0dc-091d-11e9-a22a-2b3a9ed87922.html
13 comments:
The company that provided the framing and trusses us owned by Sabas, a local dude who does alot of business with the city and BISD schools. Generally, that type of equipment used SHOULD adhere to required industry standards and SHOULD be insured. Folks should be asking these questions before hiring a vendor just because he or she is the lowest bid. You get what you pay for.
I did not read the extent of injuries suffered by the litigants, but in the days of yore, people would just suck it up and brush it off. No broken bones, lacerations, impaling ???
ya salio el peine
its all about the money
Ramiro González is a Liability for the taxpayers,fire the fucking lard ass
OK, city of brownsville new city manager n bernal bring out the City's checkbook and start writing some BIG checks to cover this. Ni Modo.
That’s what they get for trying to sabotage the other race event happening that same day. They were advices not to schedule the race on that day due to conflicting schedules with another race. City of Brownsville saw the $$$$$ in doing runs and tried to bulldoze their way in with no regard for the existing running organizations. KARMA
JUST BAD SUPERVISION ON SIGHT BY ALL ENTITIES INVOLVED WITH THIS INCIDENT...JUST SETTLE WITH THESE PEOPLE, IT'S MUCH CHEAPER. LICK YOUR WOUNDS AND MOVE-ON AND LEARN FROM THIS BIG MISTAKE!!!! WE'LL JUST PAY HIGHER TAXES JUST TO PAY HIGHER INSURANCE PREMIUMS!!!!
THANKS CITY OF BROWNSVILLE
When ever some charity organization or anybody else need monies they call on the suckers (runners and walkers) when is this going to stop.
Ya pusieron gorro. Look somewhere else like the bikers (nah) the elite is not going to help.
The injuries were very minor all the way around. The city of brownsville is a easy target for out of town lawyers. COB settles everything because they don’t have the legal skills to fight. Another embarrassment.
Ramiro Gonzalez. Please shave your head. No mames. Y levantate los pantalones. Pelon pelonete, cabeza de cuete!
All elected officials in this town are attorneys that's all they know, and the ones that do practice usually lose divorce cases.
La flor chisquiada's next project is to construct running trails in the middle of all downtown streets and in some colonias like las prietas el southmost some of the main blvds like boca chica palm blvd alton gloor and 802
It's all about money, cob an easy target.
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