Law firms file 100-page lawsuit against designers, builders of Sapelo Island gangway after collapse
Six law firms, including Morgan & Morgan and the firm of prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump, are suing five companies involved with the engineering and construction of the gangway on Georgia's Sapelo Island that led to the deaths of seven people after collapsing last October.
Four of the people who died were from Jacksonville, one was a former reverend from Brunswick, and the two others were from Georgia. Georgia state officials believe 40 people were on the gangway between the ferry and the island when it broke apart.
'This was a tragedy of unbelievable proportions,' said Chadrick Mance, a Savannah-based attorney who helped create the lawsuit, 'there was an improper design and improper maintenance of the gangway.'
The 101-page lawsuit lists 19 different charges against the companies being sued, including negligence and wrongful death related to the collapse. Part of the reason is because it lists information from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources saying the gangway should have been able to hold the weight of 320 people.
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Between survivors of the collapse and family of those who died, 50 people are listed in the lawsuit as those seeking damages.
The lawsuit claims the gangway had issues for years. It shows an email from 2022 between one of the companies that helped design the gangway and DNR, saying hairline cracks and a 'completely failed weld' had been found during an inspection, and concerns raised over a loud popping sound as people were walking across the platform. The email later said there were no issues or concerns related to the gangway's structural integrity.
The lawsuit was announced between two separate news briefings: one held by attorney Ben Crump in Atlanta and another held by Chadrick Mance at the Elm Grove Baptist Church in Meridian, Georgia. It's right next to the ferry pickup to Sapelo Island and the site where those who survived the collapse first reunited with their families after it happened.
'Replaying everything in my mind, seeing my daughter hanging on the side, finding out my wife and my youngest daughter are missing, it's just been rough,' Michael Wood said, one of the survivors who spoke at the briefing inside Elm Grove Baptist Church.
Read: Historic Mayport Lighthouse in plans to be relocated
One of the last pages of the lawsuit, which was filed in Georgia's Gwinnett County, demands a trial to be held, though no set trial or hearing date has been given. Mance, along with the other lawyers who helped put the lawsuit together, are promising answers for those affected by the collapse in the hope it may help them heal.
'We will be seeking maximum justice, unfettered justice and aggressive justice for these clients. And these are the best firms in the country. And so if there's ever an opportunity to get justice, this is it,' Mance said.
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