Property owners in Hawaii are responsible for ensuring visitors or tenants in their buildings are not exposed to known hazards. This does not only apply to commercial premises at which spills on the floors and potholes in parking lots can cause slip or trip-and-fall accidents but also to condo and apartment complexes. Multistory residential buildings require specific protection to prevent residents from falling off balconies or through windows.
Such protection might have been absent or in bad repair in a sixth-floor condo from which a 13-year-old girl fell on a recent Sunday morning. Reportedly, the incident occurred at approximately 9:30 in a condominium complex in Maui. It is unclear what caused the girl to fall.
Another resident in the complex says she ran outside when she became aware of commotion above her condo. She found the critically injured girl on the grass and suspected a fall from the balcony. However, officials reported a fall from a window. The girl was rushed to a medical facility for treatment of life-threatening injuries.
Whenever a person suffers a personal injury in a building in Hawaii, there might be grounds for a premises liability lawsuit. However, the court will require proof of negligence on the part of the property owner or landlord, and the help of an experienced attorney might be needed to establish negligence. Once the court has determined liability, it can adjudicate documented claims for damages. Along with medical expenses and other financial damages, non-economic damages like pain and suffering may form part of the claims.
Source: hawaiinewsnow.com, “Girl, 13, critically injured after falling from a Maui condo“, Dec. 18, 2017
