Inset: E’Mari Marshall-Woodard (Obituary). Background: The High Meadow Resort in Granby, Conn. (Google Maps).
A Massachusetts family whose 14-year-old son drowned over the summer is blaming overcrowding and safety failures in a lawsuit filed against a day camp and event space in Connecticut.
On June 10, at the High Meadow Resort on North Granby Road in Granby, E’Mari M. Marshall-Woodard was swimming in the pool when he drowned, police said at the time. He was rushed to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries.
The eighth grader, who attended Springfield Public Schools, was on a field trip to the day camp for which his parents paid $53, in part for the use of the pool and its lifeguards, according to the lawsuit. But there were far too many swimmers allowed that day, the filing alleges.
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The lawsuit claims the pool’s typical capacity maxed out at 142 occupants, but that day, the pool was partially closed and had a reduced capacity of 105 occupants.
At the time E’Mari was swimming, the resort allowed “more than 150 students into the pool, causing extreme overcrowding, impairing the ability of students to safely move about the pool, and preventing lifeguards and other personnel from monitoring individuals in the pool,” the lawsuit alleges.
On Sept. 30, the child’s surviving family filed a lawsuit in New Haven Superior Court, according to a copy of the 13-page complaint obtained by Law&Crime.
The lawsuit alleges two counts of wrongful death caused by negligence against both the company running the resort as well as the owner of the property where the resort is located. Two counts are brought on behalf of E’Mari’s estate; two counts are brought by the representative for his estate, his mother.
The filing and a contemporaneous news report by New Britain-based NBC affiliate WVIT recount the day of E’Mari’s death.
The child began swimming sometime in the afternoon, according to the lawsuit. By 2:30 p.m., police in Granby were called about the drowning, the TV station reported. E’Mari was pronounced dead by 4:11 p.m.
In addition to swimmers, “many more students and individuals were allowed to enter the pool deck and surrounding area, further exacerbating the dangerous crowding situation,” the lawsuit alleges.
“In those conditions, E’Mari disappeared beneath the surface within a crowd and drowned in shallow water,” the complaint reads. “When E’Mari was finally recovered, his lips and face were purple, his eyes were rolled back, and he was foaming at the mouth.”
The filing alleges various administrative lapses. E’Mari’s family notes the pool was closed by health department officials due to “multiple deficiencies” two days after the drowning. The filing also says the resort itself lacked “the required annual authorization from the Farmington Valley Health District to open the pool for the season.”
As for the total number of swimmers, the lawsuit estimates the resort allowed “nearly double the capacity of swimmers in the pool.”
The litigation also faults the resort for the sheer number of students in attendance — from at least five different school districts — overall.
“[T]hey chose to maximize profit and disregard the grave safety risks involved in permitting over 800 students onto the property without adequate staff for supervising those students, particularly in and around the pool area,” the filing goes on. “[T]hey chose to staff only three lifeguards to supervise and control over 800 students seeking pool access.”
The lawsuit further alleges the defendants “failed to implement any system to control the number of students in the pool area at any given time, although they knew the number of students likely to be present” and “allowed the pool to be open although it had not yet been inspected by local authorities and was in a dangerous and defective condition in that the water was too cloudy for safe use.”
The boy’s obituary remembers him fondly:
E’Mari had a personality that was impossible to forget. He loved playing basketball and football, reading, cooking, and spending time doing the things that brought him joy. He was proudly known as the “Fortnite King” and was a dedicated gamer[.]
Above all, E’Mari loved wholeheartedly. He especially loved his mother and never missed an opportunity to tell her, “I love you,” every chance he got. Whether in passing, before leaving a room, or during an ordinary moment together, he made sure she knew exactly how much she meant to him. Those words will forever remain one of the greatest gifts he left behind.
The lawsuit is seeking money damages, punitive damages and attorneys fees.
“Businesses are entitled to make a profit, but never by putting more people through the gates than can be safely managed,” the family’s attorney Paul Iannaccone told Hartford-based CBS affiliate WFSB. “This case is about accountability for E’Mari, but it is also about making sure that the safety of our children always comes before the number of admissions sold or dollars earned.”
The post Resort loaded 150 students into pool on a school field trip, leading 14-year-old to drown: Lawsuit first appeared on Law & Crime.
