Latest news with #wrongfuldeath
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Myrtle Beach aviation company denies wrongdoing in wake of 2022 airplane crash that killed two
FLORENCE COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — A federal jury may decide next year whether a Myrtle Beach-based aviation company is liable for the deaths of two North Carolina men. Court records show that jury selection is slated for March 2 in a wrongful death suit filed in February by the estates of Terry Druffel and Barrie McMurtrie, who were killed in a single-engine plane wreck on Sept. 14, 2022 in a wooded area outside of Conway. The men, both from Ocean Isle Beach, N.C., had extensive backgrounds in flying, according to their obituaries. A National Transportation Safety Bureau report listed a mechanic's failure to install a required gasket on the vacuum pump drive bad as the accident's probable cause — an oversight that led to catastrophic loss in engine power, the agency concluded. The Piper P28R crashed about eight miles north of Myrtle Beach roughly 10 minutes after taking off, flight tracking data shows. It was worked on by Executive Helijet Aviation months earlier, the lawsuit claims. Druffel and McMurtrie's estates are suing for more than $75,000 on grounds of wrongful death and negligence. In its response to the complaint, Executive Helijet denied any liability for the crash. * * * Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Agonizing final moments of Nevada mother who melted to death in the desert heat
A mother battling an alcohol addiction died in 107 degree Las Vegas heat after being discharged from a treatment center, her family has claimed. Melissa Gallia, 50, died of environmental heat stress in July last year, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Clark County District Court on Tuesday. The mother-of-two checked herself into Desert Hope Treatment Center seeking help with alcoholism, but was transferred to nearby Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center after suffering from hallucinations. But doctors at the hospital claimed she was exhibiting 'drug-seeking behavior' and discharged her to her home, according to a complaint obtained by Daily Mail. Gallia was found dead in a parking lot near Sunrise Hospital lot just hours after her release, with her husband Bart alleging he was not made privy of the emergency room visit until after she had died. Her family alleges Gallia 'died alone' in the parking lot because of the 'outrageous, willful, wanton, reckless and malicious' actions of staff at both facilities. The family's attorney, in a statement to Daily Mail, claimed, 'Melissa would not have died in the heat of Las Vegas' had it not been for the alleged, 'failure of medical professionals' and 'administrative failures' by both Desert Hope and Sunrise Hospital. Sunrise Hospital, which declined to comment on the case citing 'pending litigation', told Daily Mail it is, 'always sensitive to situations involving patients and remain sympathetic to the details that have been made public'. The mother-of-two checked herself into Desert Hope Treatment Center on June 30 seeking help with alcoholism, but was transferred to nearby Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center after suffering from hallucinations. Her husband Bart (pictured with Gallia) had not been made privy to her whereabouts despite her authorizing the facilities to contact him, the complaint alleges Gallia developed a problem with alcohol after the death of her mother and went to Dessert Hope seeking help just before 10pm on June 29, the complaint states. The facility collected her personal effects, including her ID, and she allegedly signed paperwork authorizing the facility to discuss her medical information with her husband, father and Sunrise Hospital. She was administered several medications shortly after her admission and again the next morning, with her case manager contacting Bart just after 8am to offer an update on her condition, the lawsuit states. But her symptoms seemingly worsened and staff continued to administer more drugs throughout the day, according to the complaint. By 11pm on June 30, Gallia reported that she was 'seeing things moving' and her doctor ordered another dose of medication. Her condition did not improve, with Gallia reporting high levels of anxiety around 3am, and 'worsening visual hallucinations' and feeling 'restless' about two hours later. Staff called 911 and Gallia was transported to the emergency room. She arrived at Sunrise Hospital on July 1 at 5:54am, but was not admitted until 11:06am, the complaint alleges. She was discharged less than 30 minutes after being seen with the attending physician noting, Gallia stated, 'she has urinary infection' and that she was seen at an 'outside facility but not prescribed antibiotics'. The notes also stated that she had 'drug seeking behavior' and was 'discharged to home', according to the complaint. Surveillance camera footage from a nearby business captured Gallia 'alone' and 'stumbling' through a parking lot around 2:21pm. She sat in a landscaped area and then, just before 3pm, was seen lying in a parking spot, the complaint states. An employee found her 'lying on the ground' and 'unresponsive' about an hour later and called emergency services. She was pronounced dead at 6:25pm. The Clark County Coroner conducted an autopsy and determined that Gallia died of environmental heat stress. According to the lawsuit, Bart was not informed that his wife had been transferred to the hospital or discharged until he received a call from a Desert Hope nurse on July 2 at 3:28am asking him where Gallia was. He rushed to Sunrise Hospital seeking information, but was 'provided conflicting answers from staff', the filing states. Bart says he only received confirmation of his wife's whereabouts later that day after getting a call from an investigator at the coroner's office, who advised him that she had died. The lawsuit also included sworn expert testimony from two medical professionals who identified multiple 'breaches in the standard of care', which they allege 'represented an utter disregard for the life and safety of Melissa'. Citing failures in properly documenting Gallia's case, as well as the lack of notifying her family of changes in her care, the experts alleged 'neglect' on behalf of the facilities, with one saying: 'In all my years of practice I have never seen so many missed opportunities to provide proper care.' The wrongful death lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. Gallia's family attorney Robert Murdock told Daily Mail in a statement: 'The matter involves the failure of medical professionals as well as administrative failures by the entities involved, which we believe allowed and caused the death of Melissa. 'At the end of the day, had Desert Hope simply picked up the phone and called Melissa's husband Bart, or, had Sunrise Hospital simply picked up the phone and called Melissa's husband Bart, Melissa would not have died in the heat of Las Vegas.'
CBC
3 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Oil companies sued over heat dome 'wrongful' death
A U.S. woman is suing seven oil and gas companies, saying they contributed to an extraordinarily hot day that led to her mother's fatal hyperthermia during a heat dome event that also killed more than 600 people in B. C. It's one of the first wrongful-death claims in the U.S. seeking to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for its role in the changing climate. The lawsuit filed in Washington state court this week says the companies knew that their products have altered the climate, including contributing to a 2021 heat wave in the Pacific Northwest that killed 65-year-old Juliana Leon, and that they failed to warn the public of such risks. On June 28, 2021, an unusual heat wave culminated in a 42.2 C day — the hottest ever recorded in the state, according to the filing. Leon had just driven 100 miles from home for an appointment, and she rolled down her windows on the way back because her car's air conditioning wasn't working. Leon pulled over and parked her car in a residential area, according to the lawsuit. She was found unconscious behind the wheel when a bystander called for help. Despite medical interventions, Leon died. The filing names Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66 and BP subsidiary Olympic Pipeline Company. WATCH | Poverty was the biggest risk during B.C.'s deadly heat dome: The biggest risk during B.C.'s deadly heat dome: Poverty 2 years ago Duration 2:07 A new report says that a disproportionate number of financially vulnerable people died in British Columbia during the punishing 2021 heat dome event. Many who died had no air conditioning. "Defendants knew that their fossil fuel products were already altering the earth's atmosphere," when Juliana was born, Thursday's filing said. "By 1968, defendants understood that the fossil fuel-dependent economy they were creating and perpetuating would intensify those atmospheric changes, resulting in more frequent and destructive weather disasters and foreseeable loss of human life." The filing adds: "The extreme heat that killed Julie was directly linked to fossil fuel-driven alteration of the climate." Chevron lawyer accuses woman of 'exploiting a personal tragedy' Chevron Corporation counsel Theodore Boutrous Jr. said in a statement: "Exploiting a personal tragedy to promote politicized climate tort litigation is contrary to law, science and common sense. The court should add this far-fetched claim to the growing list of meritless climate lawsuits that state and federal courts have already dismissed." ConocoPhillips, BP, Shell and BP subsidiary Olympic Pipeline Company declined to comment when reached by The Associated Press. The other companies did not respond to requests for comment. The lawsuit accuses the companies of hiding, downplaying and misrepresenting the risks of climate change caused by humans burning oil and gas and obstructing research. International climate researchers said in a peer-reviewed analysis that the 2021 "heat dome" was "virtually impossible without human-caused climate change." WATCH | What factors led to the heat dome over Western Canada and the U.S: What led to the heat dome taking over Western Canada and the U.S. 4 years ago Duration 2:08 CBC meteorologist and science reporter Johanna Wagstaffe breaks down the combination of factors that led to the unprecedented heat in western North America — and how climate change plays a role in these extreme events. Scientists have broadly attributed the record-breaking, more frequent, longer-lasting and increasingly deadly heat waves around the world to climate change that they say is a result of burning fossil fuels. Oil and gas are fossil fuels that, when burned, emit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide. "We've seen a really advanced scientific understanding about the specific effects that climate change can cause in individual extreme weather events," said Korey Silverman-Roati, a senior fellow at the Columbia Law School's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. "Scientists today are a lot more confident in saying that but for climate change, this would not have happened." Silverman-Roati said the specificity of the case could clarify for people the consequences of climate change and the potential consequences of company behaviour. The lawsuit was first reported by the New York Times. "Big Oil companies have known for decades that their products would cause catastrophic climate disasters that would become more deadly and destructive if they didn't change their business model," said Richard Wiles, president of the Center for Climate Integrity, said in a statement on the case. "But instead of warning the public and taking steps to save lives, Big Oil lied and deliberately accelerated the problem." How it's different from other climate cases States and cities have long gone after fossil fuel industry stakeholders for contributing to the planet's warming. Recently, Hawaii and Michigan announced plans for legal action against fossil fuel companies for harms caused by climate change, though the states have been met by counter lawsuits from the U.S. Justice Department. WATCH | Montana youth win 'game-changer' climate lawsuit: Youth win Montana climate lawsuit, hailed as a 'game-changer' 2 years ago Duration 2:25 The Trump administration has been quick to disregard climate change and has moved against initiatives aimed at combating it. The U.S. withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — an agency whose weather forecasting and research workforce has been gutted — will no longer track the cost of weather disasters fuelled by climate change. And the Environmental Protection Agency has been called on to rewrite its long-standing findings that determined planet-warming greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare. Meanwhile, the federal government has ramped up support for oil and gas production in the name of an "American energy dominance" agenda, and it rolled back a host of other efforts and projects to address climate change. Around the world, other climate cases are being watched closely as potentially setting unique precedent in the effort to hold major polluters accountable. A German court ruled this week against a Peruvian farmer who claimed an energy company's greenhouse gas emissions fuelled global warming and put his home at risk. Still, a case that looks to argue these companies should be held liable for an individual's death is rare. Misti Leon is seeking unspecified monetary damages. "Looking ahead, it's hard to imagine this will be an isolated incident," said Don Braman, associate professor at George Washington University Law School. "We're facing an escalating climate crisis. It's a sobering thought that this year, the hottest on record, will almost certainly be one of the coolest we'll experience for the foreseeable future. "It is predictable or — to use a legal term, foreseeable — that the loss of life from these climate-fuelled disasters will likely accelerate as climate chaos intensifies," he added. "At the heart of all this is the argument about the culpability of fossil fuel companies, and it rests on a large and growing body of evidence that these companies have understood the dangers of their products for decades."
E&E News
3 days ago
- Health
- E&E News
Woman sues oil companies after her mother's death in a heat wave
The daughter of an Oregon woman who died during the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat dome is suing seven oil and gas companies for wrongful death. Misti Leon alleges that the death of her mother, Juliana, was the 'direct and foreseeable consequence' of the companies' promotion of fossil fuels and their failure to warn the public that burning them could increase global temperatures. 'Defendants knew that continued fossil fuel consumption would lead to a climate crisis and spur deadly events like the 2021 heat dome,' the lawsuit says, adding that the 'deception campaign furthermore limited understanding of the causes and consequences of climate change' and stunted measures to adapt that could have saved lives. Advertisement Juliana 'Julie' Leon, 65, died of heatstroke in June 2021 on what was the hottest day ever recorded in Seattle, Washington. That morning, she had driven 100 miles from her home to a doctor's appointment for a follow-up visit related to a voluntary bariatric surgery she had undergone a few weeks before. Leon's doctors cleared her to eat solid foods and took her vitals, finding no issue.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Wrongful death lawsuit says Big Oil contributed to heat wave and woman's death
In one of the nation's first wrongful-death claims seeking to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for its role in the changing climate, a Washington state woman is suing seven oil and gas companies, saying they contributed to an extraordinarily hot day that led to her mother's fatal hyperthermia. The lawsuit filed in state court this week says the companies knew that their products have altered the climate, including contributing to a 2021 heat wave in the Pacific Northwest that killed 65-year-old Juliana Leon, and that they failed to warn the public of such risks. On June 28, 2021, an unusual heat wave culminated in a 108-degrees Fahrenheit (42.22 degrees Celsius) day — the hottest ever recorded in the state, according to the filing. Leon had just driven 100 miles from home for an appointment, and she rolled down her windows on the way back because her car's air conditioning wasn't working. Leon pulled over and parked her car in a residential area, according to the lawsuit. She was found unconscious behind the wheel when a bystander called for help. Despite medical interventions, Leon died. The filing names Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66 and BP subsidiary Olympic Pipeline Company. ConocoPhillips, BP and Shell declined to comment when reached by The Associated Press. The other companies did not respond to requests for comment. 'Defendants knew that their fossil fuel products were already altering the earth's atmosphere,' when Juliana was born, Thursday's filing said. 'By 1968, Defendants understood that the fossil fuel-dependent economy they were creating and perpetuating would intensify those atmospheric changes, resulting in more frequent and destructive weather disasters and foreseeable loss of human life.' The filing adds: 'The extreme heat that killed Julie was directly linked to fossil fuel-driven alteration of the climate." The lawsuit accuses the companies of hiding, downplaying and misrepresenting the risks of climate change caused by humans burning oil and gas and obstructing research. International climate researchers said in a peer-reviewed analysis that the 2021 'heat dome' was 'virtually impossible without human-caused climate change.' Scientists have broadly attributed the record-breaking, more frequent, longer-lasting and increasingly deadly heat waves around the world to climate change that they say is a result of burning fossil fuels. Oil and gas are fossil fuels that, when burned, emit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide. 'We've seen a really advanced scientific understanding about this specific effects that climate change can cause in individual extreme weather events,' said Korey Silverman-Roati, a senior fellow at the Columbia Law School's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. 'Scientists today are a lot more confident in saying that but for climate change, this would not have happened." Silverman-Roati said the specificity of the case could clarify for people the consequences of climate change and the potential consequences of company behavior. The lawsuit was first reported by The New York Times. Unprecedented action States and cities have long gone after fossil fuel industry stakeholders for contributing to the planet's warming — somewhat unsuccessfully. Hawaii and Michigan, for example, recently announced plans for legal action against fossil fuel companies for harms caused by climate change, and they have been met by a counter lawsuit from the U.S. Justice Department. The current administration has been quick to disregard climate change and related jargon. Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. withdrew from the Paris climate agreement, again; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — an agency whose weather forecasting and research workforce has been gutted — will no longer track the cost of weather disasters fueled by climate change; and the Environmental Protection Agency has been called on to a rewrite its long-standing findings that determined planet-warming greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare. Meanwhile, the federal government has ramped up support for oil and gas production in the name of an 'American energy dominance' agenda, and it rolled back a host of other efforts and projects to address climate change. Around the world, other climate cases are being watched closely as potentially setting unique precedent in the effort to hold major polluters accountable. A German court ruled this week against a Peruvian farmer who claimed an energy company's greenhouse gas emissions fueled global warming and put his home at risk. Still, a case that looks to argue these companies should be held liable for an individual's death is rare. Misti Leon is seeking unspecified monetary damages. 'Big Oil companies have known for decades that their products would cause catastrophic climate disasters that would become more deadly and destructive if they didn't change their business model,' said Richard Wiles, president of the Center for Climate Integrity, said in a statement on the case. 'But instead of warning the public and taking steps to save lives, Big Oil lied and deliberately accelerated the problem." ___ Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ___ ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
