Rescue squad says drowning was not its fault
NEWPORT, N.H. (AP) — The Cornish Rescue Squad argues it was not responsible for the drowning of a 64-year-old Vermont woman who died when the squad's new rescue boat sank last year, with her stretcher strapped to the deck.
The family of Virginia Yates sued the rescue squad, the boat maker, several communities and two mutual aid organizations, alleging they were negligent.
The squad responded that the death was caused by the "intervening and/or superseding acts of one or more parties outside (its) control and for whom (it) was not legally responsible," wrote Manchester attorney Mark Attorri.
In court filings, the mutual aid districts and the towns of Cornish, Plainfield, Charlestown and Springfield, Vt., also denied wrongdoing. They assert they either were not involved in the events that led to Yates' death, that they have immunity from such claims, that they "acted in good faith" or a combination of the arguments.
The Rescue Squad was taking Yates to an ambulance last August after she slipped on a dock, hurting her ankle. She was strapped into a litter, which was strapped onto the deck. The boat sank a few seconds after leaving the dock.
The lawsuit said the air boat was overloaded and that rescue squad members were "novices who undertook the mission with inadequate training and without any apparent awareness of the boat's design limitations."
The lawsuit also names Maine Yankee Air Boats Inc., which made the boat, and Harold Williams, its CEO. The families allege deficiencies in the airboat's design, marketing misrepresentations and false statements to regulatory agencies.
The lawsuit said the company gave Cornish Rescue two hours of training. Calling the boat "a near perfect sinking machine," the lawsuit alleges Maine Yankee "knew or should have known" the boat wasn't safe to operate in water deeper than two feet and that its high center of gravity made it prone to taking on water.
According to court records, notice of the lawsuit was sent by certified mail to the company and Williams, but returned to sender.
———
Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
NEWPORT, N.H. (AP) — The Cornish Rescue Squad argues it was not responsible for the drowning of a 64-year-old Vermont woman who died when the squad's new rescue boat sank last year, with her stretcher strapped to the deck.
The family of Virginia Yates sued the rescue squad, the boat maker, several communities and two mutual aid organizations, alleging they were negligent.
The squad responded that the death was caused by the "intervening and/or superseding acts of one or more parties outside (its) control and for whom (it) was not legally responsible," wrote Manchester attorney Mark Attorri.
In court filings, the mutual aid districts and the towns of Cornish, Plainfield, Charlestown and Springfield, Vt., also denied wrongdoing. They assert they either were not involved in the events that led to Yates' death, that they have immunity from such claims, that they "acted in good faith" or a combination of the arguments.
The Rescue Squad was taking Yates to an ambulance last August after she slipped on a dock, hurting her ankle. She was strapped into a litter, which was strapped onto the deck. The boat sank a few seconds after leaving the dock.
The lawsuit said the air boat was overloaded and that rescue squad members were "novices who undertook the mission with inadequate training and without any apparent awareness of the boat's design limitations."
The lawsuit also names Maine Yankee Air Boats Inc., which made the boat, and Harold Williams, its CEO. The families allege deficiencies in the airboat's design, marketing misrepresentations and false statements to regulatory agencies.
The lawsuit said the company gave Cornish Rescue two hours of training. Calling the boat "a near perfect sinking machine," the lawsuit alleges Maine Yankee "knew or should have known" the boat wasn't safe to operate in water deeper than two feet and that its high center of gravity made it prone to taking on water.
According to court records, notice of the lawsuit was sent by certified mail to the company and Williams, but returned to sender.
———
Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com