20 Hospitalized After Chlorine Leak At Raging Waters Fire Department Blames Mechanical Problem

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The below story describes illnesses that individuals received from visiting Raging Waters on Monday August 16, 2011.  Reportedly, a malfunction caused an overdose of chlorine in the wave pool, and thus, an issue arises as to whether Raging Waters is responsible for its occurance.
A party is negligent in the use or maintenance of the property if:  1.) A condition on the property created an unreasonable risk of harm; 2.) The owner knew or, through the exercise of reasonable care, should have known about it; and 3.) The owner failed to repair the condition, protect against harm from the condition, or give adequate warning of the condition.

An owner of the property is negligent if he or she fails to use reasonable care to keep the property in a reasonably safe condition. An owner of property must use reasonable care to discover any unsafe conditions and to repair, replace, or give adequate warning of anything that could be reasonably expected to harm others.

The courts will assess the following factors in determining whether the landowner used reasonable care:

a.)  The likelihood that someone would come on to the property in the same manner as the injured party did;

b.)  The likelihood of harm;

c.)  The probable seriousness of such harm;

d.)  Whether the owner knew or should have known of the condition that created the risk of harm;

e.) The difficulty of protecting against the risk of such harm; [and]

f.) The extent of the landowner’s control over the condition that created the risk of harm.

 

In the Raging Waters chlorine leak incident the likelihood that patrons will swim in the wave pool that is a major attraction that the patrons pay to use is great.  Due to the caustic nature of the chemicals used, the potential for harm and the potential magnitude of harm is substantial.  Further, the only party that had access to the pump systems is Raging Waters, and thus, its owners will likely be expected to know the conditions of its pumps and to have inspected the pump systems regularly to determine deficiencies.  This is especially true given the dangerous nature of the activity.  However, depending on the nature of the failure, it may be possible that it would not have been discoverable upon inspection.The difficulty in preventing the harm is slight in that it would likely merely require the replacing of the pump which in light of the potential and actual harm caused is slight. Raging Waters has exclusive control over the pump systems that caused the overexposure to the chlorine.  For these reasons the courts will likely find Raging Waters failed to take reasonable care to ensure the safety of the patrons at Raging Waters.
Additionally, there may be an action available against the pump manufacturer based on a products liability theory.
Anyone injured from the incident should consult a lawyer immediately to preserve their rights.


20 Hospitalized After Chlorine Leak At Raging Waters

Fire Department Blames Mechanical Problem

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — About 20 people were taken to hospitals Monday afternoon after a malfunction caused a chlorine leak in the wave pool at Raging Waters in Sacramento, firefighters said.

It’s not yet clear whether the park will reopen Tuesday.Sacramento City fire crews declared a level-two hazardous materials incident at the water park, which is located on the grounds of Cal Expo. Some of the injured left on stretchers and wearing breathing masks.

“All we know right now is there was some sort of mechanical failure with the chlorine system that delivers the chlorine — it’s a liquefied chlorine — into the wave pool. And somehow it sounds like too much came out at once,” said Assistant Chief Niko King of the Sacramento Fire Department.
Witnesses told KCRA 3 that the water in the wave pool turned green and started bubbling. Some people started dry heaving.

“We were in the wave pool and a big cloud of chemical was released. All of a sudden it was just really hard to breathe. It hurt the back of your throat. It was hurting people’s eyes. We just had to get out of the water,” said park-goer Alyssa Dronenburg. “There was no notification of what was going on. The lifeguards had no idea what was going on.”The injured included nine children and teenagers, eight adult visitors and three park workers.”Raging Waters is cooperating with (the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health) and will keep the wave pool closed until the investigation is complete,” said Joe Pinell of Raging Waters, in released statement.