Cornai Orr isn’t the first child to get hurt at a park, but he may be the first to get hurt because of a urinal. Earlier this week, Orr was using the bathroom at Crandon Park when the urinal he was at fell off the wall, smashed his foot, and left him with severe and permanent injuries. Orr had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital where they found he had a broken foot and nerve damage. He is twelve-years old and cannot attend summer camp or spend time with his friends as he’d planned for the summer. Instead, Orr is on crutches and hoping his nerve damage is only temporary.
Orr’s mother, Kevisia Cain, was with him at the park and has stated that the accident was a shock. The urinal’s connection to the wall was rusted, and Cain is concerned that the other urinals may be in the same condition, putting others at risk.
According to the Miami-Dade Parks Department, the bathrooms had been cleaned and inspected just hours before the accident. Jorge Mora of the Parks Department said he’s never heard of a urinal just falling on its own. He had all other urinals inspected to ensure they were safe, and no other urinals were found to be loose. The county is already building new bathrooms at Crandon Park.
The actions taken by the county will go far to prevent future injuries, but they may still be on the hook for this one. Orr’s family can look to collect damages for the injury, the medical bills, possibly summer camp expenses, and emotional trauma. Orr has stated that he can’t sleep at night and has at least a month to spend in the cast, which likely feels like a lifetime for the twelve-year-old.
The county may be liable for this accident because they are responsible for ensuring the park is a reasonably safe environment. A failure to do proper maintenance constitutes negligence if there was or should have been knowledge of the hazard. Rusted urinals that fall is strong evidence that they are not in a reasonably safe condition, thereby indicating negligence. The burden, however, still falls to the Plaintiff to prove that the County knew or should have known about the existence of a dangerous condition. Since the County stated that they did maintenance and inspections on the bathroom with that urinal, it follows that the rust should have been found during the inspection.
Proving your case in a premises liability action against Miami-Dade County is not a simple task. It requires the knowledge and expertise of a seasoned personal injury lawyer that is prepared to aggressively investigate and advocate on behalf of the individual who is injured.
If you or someone you know require a Miami Personal Injury attorney for an accident or injury this summer, Aigen Injury Law, is here to assist you. Please do not hesitate to submit an online FREE CASE REVIEW. At Aigen Injury Law, an experienced lawyer is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week working relentlessly on behalf of victims who suffer from all types of accidents – even urinal related ones. We offer a free consultation for your personal injury case and there is no fee unless we recover for you.