Family Sues Broward County Schools after Falling Equipment Injures Student at Band Practice
Overly cautious parents might prohibit their children from participating in extracurricular activities where the risk of injury is high. Football, gymnastics, and ice skating would likely be at the top of the list of dangerous extracurriculars, but a lawsuit being heard by the Broward County courts proves that it is possible to get injured doing almost anything. Even the most risk-averse parents would agree that band is a safe activity. What is the worst that can happen, bumping into a classmate while attempting to march information? When a student suffers serious injuries at band practice, parents get suspicious; any accident that happens at band practice must be preventable. Since the accident happened at a school, the parents have filed a premises liability lawsuit against the school district where the band practice accident took place, alleging that the school staff should have noticed and remedied dangerous conditions at the band practice, thereby preventing the accident.
Details of the Carrerou Lawsuit
Isabella Carrerou is a freshman at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland. In October 2019, she was participating in a Saturday band practice at the school when the accident occurred. According to a complaint filed by Isabella’s parents, the students were practicing outside on a windy day, allegedly without adult supervision, when several hundred pounds of band equipment fell on Isabella, breaking several of her vertebrae. When the adults became aware of the accident, they moved Isabella onto a cart, allegedly making her injuries even worse, and some time elapsed before they called 911. The NBC News Miami website reported that the school’s protocol does not dictate that authorities call 911 when a student gets injured unless the student is unconscious.
Three days after the accident, Isabella underwent surgery to repair her vertebrae. During a six-hour operation, doctors installed rods and screws in her spine. She has full motor function of all parts of her body, but she will need the rods and screws for life and is at risk of chronic pain.
Isabella’s parents filed a premises liability lawsuit against the Broward County public schools, alleging negligence on the part of the school district in the following matters:
- Allowing students to practice outdoors without adult supervision
- Failing to secure the equipment that fell and caused Isabella’s injuries
- Moving Isabella, when safety standards dictate that when a person suffers a bone fracture, you should wait for paramedics to move them instead of moving them yourself
- Failure to call 911 promptly when it was obvious that Isabella required medical treatment beyond what the school’s first aid could provide
Contact an Attorney Today for Help
Smith, Ball, Báez & Prather Injury Lawyers handle personal injury lawsuits, including premises liability cases, in South Florida, helping injured plaintiffs receive compensation for their injury-related financial losses. If you have been injured in an accident at a school or other public property, contact Palm Beach Gardens premises liability lawyers at Smith, Ball, Báez & Prather Injury Lawyers for a consultation to see if you have grounds for a lawsuit.
