SEATTLE (AP) — A jury awarded more than $100 million Monday to some of the victims of a tower crane collapse that killed four people in Seattle in 2019.
Workers were disassembling the 300-foot crane in strong wind gusts when it fell from the roof of a Google building under construction in the South Lake Union neighborhood.
During the investigation into what happened, investigators found that some companies were trying to save time, so they didn't review the crane’s disassembly instructions and prematurely removed large pins securing sections of the crane’s mast. The Associated Press reported.
According to the AP, the jury said Omega Morgan, Northwest Tower Crane Service, and Morrow Equipment Co. caused $150 million in damages.
However, Morrow, which the jury assigned 25% of the blame for the crash, was not involved in the trial, so they do not have to pay as a result of the verdict, the AP reported.
According to the news outlet, Northwest Tower Crane and Omega Morgan were held responsible for 75% of the damages.
Two ironworkers, Travis Corbet, 33, and Andrew Yoder, 31, fell to their deaths.
Their families have filed separate lawsuits, according to the AP.
The crane crushed cars below, killing Sarah Pantip Wong, a 19-year-old Seattle Pacific University student, and Alan Justad, a 71-year-old former city worker.
According to the news outlet, Wong was in an Uber on her way to a shopping mall when the crane struck the vehicle.
Wong's friend Brittany Cadelena, who was with her in an Uber, and the Uber’s driver, Ali Edriss, also filed a lawsuit, the AP reported.
Three others, including a 4-month-old, were taken to a hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins said at a news conference at the time.
Six cars in total were smashed when the crane fell.
