One of two people injured in a November accident is suing Carambola Zip Line for negligence, claiming the company failed to follow established safety protocols, properly train staff and maintain functional communication equipment.
According to the lawsuit filed in the V.I. Superior Court St. Croix district, Jeanne Glidewell was directed by a zip line attendant, who hadn’t received an all clear signal, to begin her descent down the line when she slammed into another passenger “at nearly 30 miles per hour.”
“Carambola Zip Line broke the most basic rule of zip line safety: only one rider on the line at a time,” said attorney Jacob Gower in a press release from Gower Legal. “That rule exists to prevent exactly this type of high-speed collision. What happened here was no accident — it was an inexcusable failure to take the most basic of precautions.”
Both passengers were injured and had to be rescued by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter. They were treated at the Centro Medico Hospital in Puerto Rico before being flown to the mainland.
“The incident occurred on a remote platform suspended 200 feet above the Carambola valley,” according to Gower. “Carambola Zip Line did not have an emergency plan; the batteries in its walkie-talkies were dead; and local emergency services could not access the platform as the remote access trails were not maintained. For hours, [Glidewell] remained suspended in excruciating pain with a shattered right ankle complex.”
Carambola Zip Line could not be reached for comment Tuesday evening.
According to the lawsuit, Glidewell required multiple surgeries to her right foot and months of physical therapy. She’s seeking compensatory damages for: medical expenses; future medical care; emotional distress; physical impairment; and lost wages, as well as punitive damages against Carambola.
