Man hit by 16-pound pine cone in S.F. park files $5 million suit

[Jesus Malverde]

tourist visiting the Bay Area for Fleet Week last year was doing nothing more than reading and napping under a tree in a federal waterfront park in San Francisco when a 16-pound pine cone fell on him and crushed his skull, his lawyer said Monday.

Now, Sean Mace, a U.S. Navy veteran, is suing the U.S. government, the National Park Service, the Department of the Interior and San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park where he was injured for $5 million in the hopes of changing policies so that no one else falls victim to the same type of bizarre incident.

“This guy has an irreversible brain injury and he’s only in his mid-50s,” said Scott Johnson, a San Francisco attorney representing Mace in the lawsuit. “He’s had two surgeries already and he is going to need a third.”

Mace went to the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park at the Fort Mason Center on Oct. 12, 2014, to find a spot to watch the Blue Angels air show. He found himself what he thought was a peaceful place to read and rest in the northeast corner of the park under a stand of coniferous Araucaria bidwillii trees, more commonly known as bunya pines or false monkey puzzle trees, according to the lawsuit filed Sept. 4 in San Francisco federal court.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Man-hit-by-16-pound-pine-cone-in-S-F-park-files-6567225.php

[MADem]

1. Bad link....

PAGE NOT FOUND

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[Jesus Malverde]

2. Thanks MD

Fixed

[MADem]

3. I really wanted to read about that pine cone!!!!!!!!!! nt

[dixiegrrrrl]

4. This might win his case:

Bunya Pine:

its large seed cones are extremely heavy and present a safety hazard in public areas when they fall from the tree so warning signage should be used.



http://www.homedesigndirectory.com.au/gardening/plant-finder/plant-descriptions/araucaria-bidwillii/?plant-id=803

[MADem]

5. My gawd they are like BOWLING BALLS....

This pic is from another unrelated story about the trees, but it shows the size of the things!!!


http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2014/02/14/3945284.htm

[snooper2]

7. apparently they can cause PTSD as well

Johnson said his client has been severely affected by the incident and now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. “He’s afraid to go outside at this point because he’s afraid something is going to hit him in the head,” Johnson said.

[hunter]

8. What's with the rolling eyes?

Brains are fragile organs.

PTSD, depression, and phobias are a very likely and well documented outcome of this sort of injury.

[MADem]

9. I don't blame him. He's been hit once, and experienced cognitive deficit as a result.

You've got to watch yourself on some Caribbean beaches too--those coconuts can fall and give you some trouble!

I think he has a valid case. It's got to be a horrible thing to not only lose a good chunk of your intellectual capacity, but know it.


PTSD is a weird thing. It's not always a result of sustained and repeated trauma--that's how the movies plays it, the old "shell shock" routine. You only have to be in one singular and intense incident where you're in fear of your life to feel the effects of the trauma repeatedly, if the circumstances are such that an association is created.

[snooper2]

10. It seems over the last decade lawyers automatically add that on

Just like back pain in a car wreck-

I was a passenger in an accident 20 years ago when we got hit. Lawyer, how's your back? Fine,

Oh, you need to go to a chiropractor anyway, go to this guy, my office will pay for it-
You'll get a bigger settlement!

[MADem]

12. I'd probably have PTSD too if I got clunked on the head and woke up dumber--and knew it.

This guy has experienced reduced mental capacity and has an awareness of it. No one likes to get stupider.

One of the joys of aging is wisdom. It's one of the FEW joys, that one's thought process becomes more sophisticated and nuanced, and all those experiences down the years have been processed and are part of your library of memories that add to understanding.

I don't know how much money is enough to make up for losing one's full intellectual capacity. I hope he takes 'em to the cleaners.

[Brother Buzz]

13. A bowling ball weighs sixteen pounds

We have a Bunya-Bunya thriving across the street and it's twice as tall as the ones at Fort Mason. The 'bombs' drop in August, typically forty to seventy-five every year. I counted fifty-five this year, but a few disappear with curiosity seekers.

The pods are interesting for a month or so, but my gripe with the tree are the leaves. The dried leaves (needles?) blow into my yard and they are hard and very sharp. They are so sharp they are difficult to pick-up barehanded, and lethal if stepped on barefooted; Mother Nature's caltrop

[MADem]

14. Tongs and hiking boots!!!! nt

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

6. My first instinct was to say frivolous, but once I read the details, I changed my mind.

He's got a lot of good points - non-native species, with highly dangerous pods, no warning signs, nothing to keep people out from under them. He got brain damage, but somebody could easily be killed by those suckers.

[randome]

11. That was my initial thought, too. Now I don't need to read the article. Thanks!

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]