A trial alleging gross negligence in a deadly crane collapse in Dallas nearly four years ago begins Wednesday afternoon.
On June 9, 2019, a crane collapsed during a summer storm and sliced into a five-story Uptown Dallas apartment building. The collapse killed one person, injured five others and left 500 residents looking for a new place to live.
The lawsuit headed to court Wednesday was filed in July 2022 and names 17 plaintiffs, all residents of Greystar’s five-story Elan City Lights apartment complex, but focuses on 29-year-old Kiersten Smith who was killed when the crane smashed into her apartment.
The lawsuit alleges gross negligence on the part of the crane company, Bigge Crane and Rigging, and demands punitive damages of at least $ 1 million.
OSHA fined Bigge Crane and Rigging $26,000 in December 2020 alleging the company did not inspect for loose or dislodged bolts on the crane and did not follow the manufacturer’s instructions to remove bolts that showed surface rust. The citation by OSHA failed to shed light on what caused the deadly collapse and Bigge Crane and Rigging said at the time that they planned to appeal the fine.
At the time of the collapse, wind gusts up to 71 mph shattered windows of high-rise buildings and tore trees apart in the area. The crane operator released a statement a month after the crash saying the cause of the collapse was high winds and not operator failure, but another nearby crane wasn’t affected by the wind storm that the company blames for the damage.
A number of lawsuits have been filed since the collapse. The insurance underwriters who represent Greystar Real Estate Partners and the Elan City Lights complex said in a 2021 lawsuit against the crane operator that insurance claims are still ongoing and that they had already paid out nearly $60 million to people and businesses affected by the collapse.
Opening arguments were expected to begin at about 1:30 p.m.
