By Adam Harrington, Noel Brennan
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CHICAGO (WBBM) — Several people are suing the owner and general manager of the Offshore Rooftop restaurant at Navy Pier, after they were burned when a s’mores station flashed over in flames during a corporate event there.
Cavanagh Sorich Law Group announced Wednesday that it filed lawsuits in Cook County Circuit Court against Offshore Rooftop operator Maverick Hotels and Restaurants LLC and general manager Laurent Boisdron.
The law group filed suit on behalf of five plaintiffs — four of whom suffered burn injuries when the fire broke out on Wednesday, Sept. 24, at a food station at a corporate event hosted by global investment management company Nuveen.
The lawsuits said the plaintiffs were gathered around a station set up for guests to roast marshmallows for s’mores, when a Maverick employee poured on a flammable liquid — possibly alcohol — and caused a flashover.
Flames shot into the air, and set some of the plaintiffs ablaze, the law group alleged. Surveillance video provided by the law firm shows the moment it all happened.
“The video is horrifying to watch. One second the plaintiffs are standing around enjoying a lovely work event at the rooftop restaurant and then suddenly the flames shoot up, and they are on fire. The physical and emotional wounds from this will last a lifetime. The recovery will be very difficult,” Timothy J. Cavanagh, founding partner at Cavanagh Sorich Law Group, said in a news release. “There was clear negligence as well as disregard for the safety of the guests. It is obvious the employee was not properly trained or supervised to work around an open flame, which is an inherently dangerous situation and put guests at risk of serious harm.”
Attorneys said a 25-year-old woman, Kira Bond, was left in critical condition with third-degree burns to her face, chest area, and torso.
“One second, Kira and her coworkers are standing around this s’mores station occupied by an employee of Maverick Hotels,” Cavanagh added at a news conference. This woman is working at the s’mores station where they obviously have marshmallows and chocolate, and at one point, this employee… takes a container — almost like a ketchup-type container — and dumps liquid onto this open flame and causes a fireball that sets Kira on fire.”
Bond had to be taken to the Trauma, Burn & Rehabilitation Unit at Stroger Hospital of Cook County where she received skin grafts and underwent surgery — and while she has been released, she will need more treatment, attorneys said.
Bond does not live in Chicago. She is a New York City resident who is relocating to a new apartment in Brooklyn. which she has not even gotten to visit yet because she has been stuck far away, Cavanagh said.
“Her life has been incredibly disrupted,” Cavanagh said.
Bond said she has had different challenges every week since she was burned.
“Just the initial first week, I didn’t know how long I was going to be there, how severe the burns were. I was going through excruciating pain every day — especially at daily dressing changes,” she said. “After surgery, I had, you know, staples in my skin for a week — but still having to, you know, do the exercises to maintain mobility in certain parts of my neck and other places, and just in general, you know, I have grafts on my inner thighs, which that skin to begin with is very thin, so they had to graft that in.”
Bond said she has struggled to gain back her strength.
“Like everything, I’ve kind of had to ask for help, and I am not one to really rely on — I like to be very independent,” she said. “I do a lot in one day, and it’s just completely like, put everything on hold—every aspect of my life.”
Bond said the event at Navy Pier involved Nuveen employees from all different offices around the nation, and was preceded by a boat tour.
She said she had just started the job at Nuveen a few weeks before the incident at the Navy Pier restaurant. She said everyone at the company has been “incredibly supportive.”
Another woman, 44-year-old Lisa Segner, suffered burns to her abdomen and lower extremities and had to go to the burn unit at Stroger too, attorneys said.
Two others, Peter Gianaris and Fernando Ramriez, suffered less severe burns — but still had to be treated as outpatients and suffered emotional trauma as they saw their colleagues on fire and rushed over to assist, attorneys said.
A fifth plaintiff, Segner’s husband, Phillip, sued for loss of consortium, attorneys said.
“This is a well-known restaurant attracting guests from around the United States who visit Navy Pier. It hosts many private functions like this one. Guests have a right to expect that the defendants operate the facility in a safe manner,” Marc McCallister, partner at Cavanagh Sorich Law Group, said in the news release. “Instead, they unnecessarily poured a combustible accelerant on the open flame, creating a fireball.”
Attorneys said they are still trying to find out who the employee operating the s’mores stand was, and if the employee was properly trained and supervised to work around an open flame.
The lawsuits were filed on Friday, Oct. 17. Cavanagh said the lawsuits have since been consolidated for discovery, and an initial hearing is planned for Dec. 17 at the Daley Center.
CBS News Chicago has contacted the restaurant operator for comment.
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