The San Bernardino County Fire Department rescued a woman who fell anywhere from 15 to 20 feet into a manhole at the former site of the Carousel Mall in San Bernardino. The rescue occurred on November 20, 2024.
Firefighters were dispatched to the area at approximately 11am, after a passerby heard someone screaming for help from the manhole. The firefighters discovered an adult women in the manhole; the woman said that she fell in the manhole the night before.
The rescue required a technical team of 20 personnel. After about 1.5 hours, they were able to lift the woman out of the manhole. The woman was taken to a local hospital with moderate injuries (according to authorities, she possibly sustained injuries to her lower extremities).
The incident occurred at the former site of the Carousel Mall, which was closed in 2017. The mall was demolished in 2023 because it was attracting criminal activity and had become the scene of many dangerous incidents, some of them fatal. The site remains fenced off to the public since then, so it is unclear how the woman got into the site. Officials did not confirm whether the woman was homeless.
Crews secured the manhole. No further details surrounding the incident have been released.
Contact the Normandie Law Firm – if you or a loved one suffered injuries in an incident like the one mentioned above, it is important that you seek legal help as soon as possible. Based on the details surrounding your claim and the harm that you suffered, you could have the right to sue and receive compensation.
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Abandoned Buildings and Sites are Common Throughout San Bernardino
The city of San Bernardino is known for having multiple abandoned buildings, mostly due to the city’s financial status. Naturally, these abandoned buildings attract homeless individuals seeking shelter. In addition, because there is little to no activity around these abandoned buildings or demolition sites, homeless individuals know that they will not be asked to move. Because of this, homeless people gather at these locations, even when there are fences and no trespassing signs.
Uncovered Manholes Can Result in Falls
When manholes are not properly covered, the cover is broken, the cover is misplaced, etc., anyone walking by, especially in the nighttime, can fall into the manhole. In the case described above, the victim fell anywhere from 15 to 20 feet into the manhole. Such falls can result in a number of injuries, including but not limited to neck injuries, back injuries, spinal cord injuries, head injuries, broken legs, broken feet, broken toes, broken arms, broken ribs, and more.
Liability for Unsecured Manhole Falls
Typically, liability for falls is based on the concept of premise liability. Under premise liability law, property owners have a duty to keep their premises free of any hazards or dangerous conditions that could lead to incidents, such as unsecured or uncovered manholes. Property owners generally owe this duty of care to guests with implicit/explicit permission to be on the property.
What about incidents that happen on premises that are closed down to the public, like abandoned buildings or demolition sites? When these incidents occur on private properties that have no trespassing signs and are fenced off, things can get more complex. Although many believe that property owners are not liable for harm to trespassers, the truth is that liability will be based on the specific circumstances surrounding the incident. That is, property owners may have a limited duty of care towards trespassers. More specifically, they must refrain from intentionally causing harm (for example, by willfully creating hazards to hurt known trespassers, and more). Even with this limited duty of care, property owners are not obligated to ensure the safety of trespassers.
Still, trespassers may have the right to file a lawsuit even if they were not lawfully on the premises.
Property Owners can be Liable for Harm to Trespassers based on Attractive Nuisance Doctrine
Even though property owners have a limited duty of care to trespassers, they can still be sued under the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine. Under the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine, property owners could be found liable after incidents if their property had features likely to attract any trespassers, and the property owner took inadequate measures to prevent the property from being accessed.
For homeless individuals, an attractive nuisance may include an area with potential for shelter, materials to use to build shelter, a source of water, a source of electricity, etc. For a property owner to be found liable under this law, the property and the hazard should have been easily accessible to the victim, either with open access points or through poorly secured areas (like broken gates, flimsy fences, etc.). Examples of attractive nuisances could include construction sites, unsecured utility boxes, unsecured water sources, abandoned buildings, and more.
Can I Sue if I was Injured?
Yes, you could sue. If you were injured at the former site of the Carousel Mall in San Bernardino, you could sue. You could sue the City of San Bernardino (the owner of the 43-acre site). The city could be liable for manhole incidents or any other incidents that occur on the site. For more information about your right to file a lawsuit against the City of San Bernardino, contact us today. Our manhole incident lawyers are ready to guide you every step of the way.
What Compensation is Available for Recovery?
Some of the different categories of compensation available for compensation could include the following:
- Medical expenses
- Lost pay
- Pain and suffering
- Property damage
- Punitive damages
- Legal expenses
Our manhole injury attorneys are fully committed to fighting for your rights and helping you secure the maximum payout available for your claim – whether this means negotiating a settlement or taking your claim to trial to reach a verdict. If you are ready to explore the possible value of your manhole accident claim, contact us today.
Contact the Normandie Law Firm for Help with Your Claim!
If you or a loved one suffered harm after falling into a manhole, it is important that you seek legal help as soon as possible. Based on the details surrounding the incident and the harm that occurred as a result, you could have the right to sue and receive compensation. For more information about the legal options available to you, please do not hesitate to reach out to the team here at the Normandie Law Firm as soon as possible. Our team has decades of experience and is ready to provide you with the guidance that you need to fight for your right to get justice.
Free Case Reviews: our team offers free case evaluations which include free consultations and free second opinions. Whether you are looking to begin or continue your manhole fall claim, our team can help you. To schedule a free case review, contact us today.
Zero-Fee Guarantee: you will not have to worry about paying upfront legal fees for any of our legal services. Additionally, since our team works on a strict contingency structure, you will not be responsible for paying anything at all if your lawsuit is not successful. If you do not win, you simply will not be required to pay any legal fees.
Contact us today for more information about what you could be entitled to receive!
Other Pages on Our Website Related to This Topic
Open Manhole Injury Accident Lawyer
Exposed Manhole Injury Accident Lawsuit
