At least five people have been injured in a second-story porch collapse in the Palmer Square neighborhood on Chicago’s Northwest Side.
Porch Detached from Apartment Building
On Oct. 27, 2018, at approximately 2:00 a.m., a raised second-story porch detached from an apartment building on the 2900 block of West Lyndale Street, seriously injuring two females and three males.
Two of those injured in the porch collapse were taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, with one in serious-to-critical condition and the other in stabilized condition.
Two others were taken to Norwegian American Hospital, and one person was taken to Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park. All three of them were stabilized in good-to-fair condition.
Porch Collapse Statistics
According to a Consumer Product Safety Commission analysis in 2015, an estimated 6,500 people have been taken to emergency rooms as a result of collapsed porches and balconies since 2003. Of those people, twenty-nine were killed.
The deadliest porch collapse in United States history occurred in Chicago on June 29, 2003, when a balcony collapsed during a party in a Lincoln Park apartment building. Thirteen people were killed and fifty-seven people were seriously injured in that incident. Twenty-seven families filed suit against the building’s owner and the city.
The owner of that building contended that overcrowding led to the porch collapse, but inspections by the City of Chicago found that poor construction was at fault. The building’s owner was fined a total of $108,000.00, though criminal charges were not filed.
Chicago Premises Liability Attorneys
Property owners have a duty to keep their buildings or land in a condition that is safe for visitors that are authorized to be there. If a property owner breaches that duty, those who have been hurt may be able to seek financial compensation for their injuries by bringing what is known as a premises liability claim. If you are considering pursuing such an action, please consider seeking out the assistance of an experienced attorney, such as the Chicago premises liability attorneys at GWC.
With more than $2 BILLION successfully recovered for our clients and offices throughout the state, GWC is one of the premier Personal Injury and Workers’ Compensation law firms in Illinois.
If you have been negligently injured on another person’s property, please contact GWC today to schedule a free consultation with one of our attorneys. Call us at (312) 464-1234 or click here to chat with one of our representatives at any time.
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