Two families have filed the first wrongful death lawsuits after 3 construction workers died when a staircase collapsed inside the future headquarters of Marathon Oil Corporation in Houston, Texas.
The families are seeking financial compensation of at least $1 million.
They accuse Marathon Oil and several subcontractors of negligence for failing to comply with safety regulations, properly supervise and train employees, or provide workers with adequate safety equipment.
On October 5 around 1:30 p.m., a precast concrete staircase collapsed at the new Marathon Oil construction site in Houston, Texas.
Three construction workers died and 1 was injured when the staircase collapsed from the 13th and 14th floors downward. As the concrete slabs fell, the weight triggered a domino effect, causing the staircases to fail one after the other, trapping the men under tons of rubble.
The victims were on the lower floors. “A cascade of falling material loudly announced the oncoming mortal danger, but there was no time or space to escape,” the lawsuit reads.
The first two wrongful death lawsuits were filed on October 8 by the families of 29-year-old Jose Alexander Santos Granados and 36-year-old Dholman Obdulio Gomez Castellano.
The family of the third victim, 64-year-old Candelario Mexicano Solares, is also planning on filing a wrongful death lawsuit.
Granados and Castellano both worked for Gulf Shore Erectors, the company responsible for setting, installing and repairing the staircases. The lawsuits also name East Texas Precast, which made the concrete for the staircase.
Source: Lawsuit filed in Marathon Oil fatal building collapse