New York – This twenty-three year old woman was walking on a Manhattan sidewalk when she was hit in the head by a falling object. The injured woman was caught by surprise as she walked with a friend during a rain storm. Suddenly, a heavy chair flew off of a high balcony of a nearby residential building in a heavy wind. The falling debris came crashing down on the woman causing a severe head injury with serious intracranial hemorrhage or bleeding. She was rendered unconscious and bystanders called for an ambulance. Paramedics stabilized the injury victim and she was rushed to a hospital’s trauma center to undergo emergency surgery. Doctors were able to save her life and treated her severe neurological injuries along with various other wounds. The woman was hospitalized at Bellevue Hospital and continues to struggle to recover from her disabling injuries. They fear that she may have a permanent disability as a result of physical injuries. However, the neuropsychiatric and neurological injury can also leave her with permanent cognitive problems, a post-traumatic stress disorder as well as an adjustment disorder.

The woman has decided to file a personal injury lawsuit claiming negligence on behalf of the owners and residents of the apartment. The claim of negligence is based on the fact that furniture, loose objects and debris should be removed or secured to a balcony or rooftop before a wind storm can blow it over. It is the responsibility of home owners and building managers to maintain basic safety standards to prevent injury or wrongful death. You can see more about this horrifying accident with injuries here.

Illustrative Photo Credit: MilitaryHealth [License]