|
Thursday, September 9, 1982
$130 Million Suit Says Fuel Tank Faulty
An
Omaha teen-ager who survived third-degree burns, over more than 55
percent of his body in a fiery car crash last year is suing
General Motors Corp. and the Earnest Machine Products Co. of
Parma, Ohio for $130 million.
The
suit on behalf of Michael Nelson, 17, of 2812 N. 99th St., was
filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court in Cleveland, Ohio.
It alleges the fuel tank on the 1967 Camaro, which Nelson was
driving on the night of the accident, was defective and
dangerously placed on the car. Earnest Machine, manufactured
bolts used to fasten Camaro gas tanks.
The
suit contends the gas tank fell from the car when the Camaro was
struck in the right rear-fender-by another car. The suit says
gas spilled from the tank and the Camaro burst into flames, The
Associated Press reported.
The
accident occurred on 120th Street near the Westover Road
intersection on March 2, 1981. Police at the time said
the car driven by Nelson, then 16, was northbound on 120th
Street at high speed when it apparently swerved to avoid a car
that had slowed or stopped at the Westover Road intersection.
Reports, said the Nelson car crossed the centerline and into the
path of a 1972 Grand Prix driven by Ron Wolf, 32, of 2815 S. 138th
St. Police said the Nelson car was struck broadside on the
passenger side and caught fire.
The
accident occurred about 9 p.m. Nelson and three other teenagers
in the car had attended a Burke High School, basketball game.
Michael Smutny, 16, of 2330 S. 125th St., was killed in the
crash. The other two teen-agers were injured. They later
returned to classes at Burke.
No
charges were filed in the case.
Nelson, in critical condition for several days, was
treated at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio,
Texas, and returned home in May 1981. His left hand had
been burned so badly it had to be amputated. He graduated with
his Burke High class last June.
The
suit was filed by Omaha attorneys William Gast and Paul
Peters and a Cleveland law firm. The suit claims General Motors
could have used alternative designs which would have protected
the Camaro's gas tank and prevented Nelson's injuries.
The
suit also says a bolt, which held the rear of a fuel tank mounting
strap to the frame separated. This resulted in a loosening of the
strap and eventually caused or contributed to the separation of
the tank from the car, according to the suit.
Gast told The World-Herald that Nelson is now at home
awaiting what he described as "an extensive schedule of plastic
surgery."
|
