A wrongful death and two personal injury lawsuits have now been filed in a Memorial Day parasailing incident that killed a Schaumburg mother.
Supraja Alaparthi, 33, was killed and her son, Sriakshith Alaparthi, 10, and nephew, Vishant Sadda, 9 were injured after the parasail they were riding crashed into the Old Seven Mile Bridge near Marathon, Florida.
The family was visiting the Florida Keys.
Nexstar’s Tampa-affiliate WFLA reported that the incident occurred at about 5 p.m. May 30 when a cluster of scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms pushed off the mainland. According to Jonathan Rizzo, National Weather Service Key West’s warning coordinator meteorologist, wind gusts in the area were about 32 mph.
The boys survived, but lawyers say Vishant suffered traumatic and permanent injuries.
On Tuesday, a Florida-based law firm filed a suit against Lighthouse Parasail. A lawsuit against the marina will follow, attorneys said, claiming negligence.
Lawyers described the weather as horrific and said wind gusts were high, adding that the captain couldn’t control the boat or parasail, and when he cut the parasail, he had no emergency plan.
Authorities investigating the case say the wind caused the parasail to peg.
A report published days after the accident revealed the boat’s captain, 49-year-old Daniel Couch, feared the sail would drag the boat and endanger others, so he purposefully cut the cable that connected the family’s harness to the boat.