Posted on 07/19/2024 5:45:53 PM PDT by CFW
The family of a 76-year-old Kentucky man was awarded over $2 million for his death from second- and third-degree burns suffered in a scalding hot motel shower where water temperatures reached at least 150 degrees Fahrenheit.
Court documents from the lawsuit alleged that Alex Chronis checked into the Econo Lodge in Erlanger, Kentucky, on Nov. 18, 2021. The next morning, he turned on the shower and was immediately struck by extremely hot water that knocked him to the floor while the water continued to burn him. The two people who were in the motel with Chronis heard his screams and removed him from the tub.
[snip]
The defense claimed Chronis didn't even stay at the motel, said Blankenship. Attorneys for the defense declined to comment, citing the pending appeal.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
It must be quite old. The circa 1994 shower valve in my old house had a temp limiter adjustment.
<< This sounds like the idiots who put McDonalds hot coffee between their legs only to get burned. >>
The facts of that case were not reported accurately by the media:
https://youtu.be/pCkL9UlmCOE?si=WM9z89unUhIqCjGl
The home valves are not as intricate as the ones for commercial use.
Yeah:
"In the event that you are struck in the face by a blast of 150 °F water, scroll down the menu until you come to 'Reset' Then select one of the 16 options listed there." (If you are resetting the Showermatic 3000, you should instead proceed to the sub-menu 'Severe burning.')"
Now imagine that when translated from Japanese into English by a Frenchman.
Technical Editor and Translator here: I've written thousands of "Operating Instructions," "Installation Instructions," and the like - in multiple languages.
I take great care to be as clear and yet concise as possible.
But I also encounter, on a day-by-day basis, technical literature written by others. Much of it is laughably inaccurate, vague, and ambiguous.
My greatest bugbear: "Actual device may differ in appearance!" Meaning: The reset button (of an electronic device) could, in actual fact, be located on the right-hand side of the device, instead of on the left - or it might be entirely missing!
In comparison to the junk literature I frequently encounter, the typical contribution posted here by your average FReeper reads like the Gettysburg Address!
Regards,
I won’t just jump in the
shower and turn the water on.
It could be that the faucet
was faulty and didn’
allow for the cold water
adjustment.
I always check before I get in...just saying.
Sorry, don't believe it. I've been around a long time and have NEVER EVER turned on a shower that had IMMEDIATE hot water. Ever. There's always a wait, and while you're waiting you're adjusting the temperature to get it right.
I smell a lawsuit.
That’s what we told people if they complained.
The person screwed up and then cashed in on it. No shortage of those people I’m afraid.
You can't have it any cooler or you are risking Legionnaire's Disease.
Some elderly people in an unfamiliar place can easily lose the ability, in an emergency, to take the steps needs to extricate themselves from danger. And elderly people often have difficulty with any device that is new to them, even something like a shower. Rest in peace to this poor soul.
I see no different requirements for “home” vs “commercial” with respect to shower valves.
In fact:
https://www.asse-plumbing.org/media/5216/asse_guidelines_for_temp_control_devices.pdf
Covers shower valves on page 6, and it says:
• There are three different types shower valves that meet this standard:
a. Pressure balancing
b. Thermostatic (mechanical and electronic)
c. Combination pressure balancing and thermostatic
The standard referenced is “ASSE 1016-2011/ASME A112.1016-2011/CSA B125.16-11, Performance Requirements for Automatic Compensating Valves for Individual Showers and
Tub/Shower Combinations.”
The Delta and Kohler valves I’m familiar with are of the pressure-balancing type.
Additionally, it says:
“The temperature limit stop must be set at the time of installation, and may need to be periodically adjusted for variations in water temperatures”
Perhaps that’s where the problem happened. Was either not set correctly or not adjusted when incoming water temp changed.
The person is dead.
The person screwed up and then their estate cashed in on it.
The water came out too hot and strong because of that, which cause the man to slip in the tub. This caused the man to not be able to get out quickly enough to avoid the majority of the damage. I will admit that the problem was aggravated by his not staying in the hospital but leaving to try to return to work. A work ethic probably not shared by the owner of the hotel.
I know certain people are natural toad eaters. I do not think you are one of those people. I just believe you are not in position of all the facts.
Go and read a bit more on the case and come back.
The cause of this whole thing is the owner of the hotel not obeying the rules in regards to safety standards.
Thanks for trying to update me on this article as I really didn’t read the whole thing. (can you tell?) ha ha
possibly but the $2M award points toward someone doing something wrong and not just missing a periodic adjustment.
Missing an adjustment or not setting it at all is negligence.
Also, there could have been a problem with the shower valve itself which the hotel knew about but didn’t fix.
For example, Kohler shower valves are known to have a problem where they get stuck on full hot. This is more likely with hard water. The pressure balance mechanism seems to get jammed up with minerals, allowing only hot water through.
The cartridge was redesigned, according to Kohler, to better handle hard water conditions. This redesign happened sometime after 2017.
2 out of the 3 Kohler shower valves in my house developed this problem within 4 years of their installation. Kohler sent replacement parts under warranty to fix them.
Before I was aware of the warranty on these, I was able to get the original cartridge to work again by soaking it in vinegar for several hours and then using a screwdriver to work the pressure balance mechanism back and forth, to free it up.
It remains to be seen if the redesigned replacement cartridge will fail like the original did.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.