Last week, a Florida federal jury ruled in favor of Carnival Corp. in a negligence case brought by a passenger who alleged he had been badly injured during a cruise. Golden was a passenger aboard the Carnival Sunshine on a five-day cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida, to the Bahamas in May 2014, when he noticed while lounging with his family that the deck had become so hot it burned sections of skin on the soles of his feet, according to the December 2014 complaint. The burns became infected and gangrenous, leading to kidney failure and hospitalizations that resulted in three separate surgeries involving the amputation of all of Golden's toes in July 2014. Plaintiff claimed Carnival "knew that their fake Teakwood deck heated up to outrageously high temperatures so as to burn the feet of a passenger who ended up having all 10 toes and parts of both feet amputated." The jurors found after about two hours of deliberation that passenger Gregory Golden's injuries weren't caused by any negligence on Carnival's part.
Dog Bite Leaves Four Year Old Injured
There was a horrible attack by a pitbull last month in Panama City that left a 4 year old little boy hospitalized with several bites. At first, authorities had a hard time finding the dog because the little boy's mother's boyfriend hid the truth from authorities. Finally, the story came together between what the 4 year old told his biological father and what they learned from others. Now, the pitbbull has been euthanized. Sheriff's officials believed the boy, was attacked while his mother's boyfriend stopped by a garage sale. When the 4 year old was released from the hospital, he told his biological father he was playing with puppies when attacked. Deputies learned the boyfriend had actually taken the boy to a friend's house who owned several large dogs, including the attacking pitbull, who had just had puppies. Deputies arrested the boyfriend for Perjury and Child Neglect. We've also learned the pitbull's owner Has also been arrested. The owner gave the dog over to Bay County Animal Control to be euthanized a couple weeks ago. They say this is not the first incident with the pit bull. They have had two complaints about the dog this year with one of those complaints involving a bite to the leg.
Safety Alert: Can Drones/Smart Phone Apps Make Beaches Safer?
Summer brings a higher risk of shark bites and drownings. Lifeguards do their part but what if they had drones to assist them? A central Florida professor says drones will help make beach outings safer in the future. Drones can fly over pretty far areas, and at high and low altitudes. That's why John Robbins says they hold great potential for public safety at the beach. Robbins researches unmanned aircraft systems at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. "With camera technologies or different types of sensors that are able to pick out things, discriminate things on the ground, like a swimmer that's in distress or say you were picking out a shadow for a shark, something like that," said Robbins. One thing keeping beach safety officials from using drones to scout for sharks right now is federal regulations. They're still evolving when it comes to the drone industry. Robbins is waiting for rules to come out -possibly in the next couple of months. He said regulators have to look at how drones can fly safely alongside manned aircraft such as helicopters flying near crowded beaches. Researchers are also looking at how drones can benefit other industries such as agriculture and real estate.
Auto Insurance Rates On The Rise
Florida's economy has improved since the 2008 global financial crisis caused a drawn out downturn, but a recovering job market and lower gas prices have had a downside: more traffic crashes and higher auto-insurance rates.
Trucking Accidents
WJHG reports that two people were injured after the driver of a semi-truck fell asleep on Interstate-10 early this month. According to a FHP report, a 29 year old male was driving a semi-truck west on I-10 around 2:30 a.m. near State Road 77 when he fell asleep. The semi drifted into the center grass median before crossing into westbound lanes and onto the north shoulder, where it hit several trees down the embankment.
Where does Okaloosa County rank in terms of boating accidents?
As the temperatures and dew points start to increase there is no better place to spend the day than on the water. Along the Northwest Florida coast we are blessed to have plenty of boating opportunities from fishing to water skiing.
Walton County Sees Another Near Fatal Car Accident
Two men are in the hospital with serious injuries after a traffic crash in Walton County last week. An 18 year old man from Crestview was driving a Ford Focus north on State Road 285 south of State Road 8 around 6:55 a.m. He tried to pass a tractor trailer by continuing north in the southbound lanes of S.R. 285. The FHP report states this is when the Focus collided head-on with the front left of a Chevy Van driven by a 26 year old male from DeFuniak Springs. At least one patient was taken by helicopter to a hospital. The driver of the Focus is charged with improper change of lanes when passing.
Safety Alert: How Safe Are Charter Buses?
A horrific accident occurred in Texas recently that made me think of all of the charter buses that come through Northwest Florida to visit our beautiful Emerald Coast. It was an accident that killed eight people and injured 44 others in a one-vehicle rollover. Both state and federal investigators are working on this case as a result of the significance of all of those injured and those who had died, but also due to questions as to the operations and the maintenance of buses in this charter bus company. According to the article, investigators have requested inspection and maintenance records and examined the bus and the scene,
Do Helmets Reduce Or Increase The Risk Of Motorcycle Accident Fatalities?
Motorcycle riders, groups and medical professionals are still weighing in on the Sunshine State's policies. Riders who have ridden for years have seen tragic accidents and ridden in all kinds of traffic and weather. Some of those well weathered riders chose to wear a helmet, even though since 2000, it's been legal in Florida to ride without a helmet, provided the rider:
Pedestrian Accidents On The Rise
There has been a string of pedestrian fatalities as a result of motor vehicle accidents here on the Emerald Coast. Law Enforcement is scrambling to find a way to reduce the fatalities and find a rhythm or a reason for the horrible accidents.
