LAWSUITS NEWS & LEGAL INFORMATION
Fatal Bus Fire
Bellaire, TX: (Sep-25-07) The families of 23 elderly residents of Sunrise Senior Living Services Inc., of McLean, VA, brought a lawsuit against the Bellaire nursing home, after their family members died in a bus fire near Dallas while evacuating from Hurricane Rita. The company operates Brighton Gardens of Bellaire, which leased two buses to evacuate residents as Hurricane Rita approached the Texas coast in September 2005. In June 2007, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) determined the probable cause of the accident was insufficient lubrication of a rear axle, which overheated and caused a fire in the wheel well that quickly filled the 1998 bus with flames and heavy smoke. The NHTSA investigation found that bus operator Global Limo Inc., located in Pharr in the Rio Grande Valley, skipped required inspections to determine a rear tag axle lacked lubrication. A federal jury found Global Limo owner and former NFL player James Maples guilty of failing to require his drivers to conduct daily safety inspections and skipping required maintenance.
In a settlement reached, the nursing home paid an undisclosed amount of money to the families to resolve allegations. Lawsuits against the bus manufacturer and others are proceeding. The lawsuit against the bus maker is focusing on possible design and manufacturing defects in the axle lubrication system on the 1998 bus. [HOUSTON CHRONICLE: FATAL BUS FIRE]
Published on Sep-25-07
In a settlement reached, the nursing home paid an undisclosed amount of money to the families to resolve allegations. Lawsuits against the bus manufacturer and others are proceeding. The lawsuit against the bus maker is focusing on possible design and manufacturing defects in the axle lubrication system on the 1998 bus. [
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