HOUSTON, Tex. — The family of 3-year-old A.W., who lost four fingers in a devastating escalator incident at a Bellaire H-E-B store, has filed a lawsuit against TK Elevator Corporation and H-E-B, LP for negligence, gross negligence, and premises liability. Filed today in Harris County, the lawsuit seeks justice for A.W., who is left permanently disfigured due to the defendants’ failure to maintain and monitor the escalator, resulting in her traumatic injuries.
On March 30, 2024, A.W. was shopping with her parents at a H-E-B store when she became trapped by a dangerously wide gap between the escalator steps and the skirt. As her right hand became wedged, the escalator’s safety features, which should have stopped the machinery, failed, resulting in the amputation of her fingers. Despite the family’s efforts to free her, A.W.’s fingers were severed down to the palm, leaving her permanently disabled.
“This tragic incident has forever altered the life of a 3-year-old child and her family,” said Attorney Ben Crump. “The defendants failed in their basic duty to keep customers safe, and their negligence resulted in a young child losing her fingers in a horrific incident that could have been avoided with proper maintenance. This was completely preventable.”
The lawsuit details multiple failures by TK Elevator Corporation and H-E-B, LP, including allowing hazardous conditions like the excessive gap between the escalator’s skirt and steps, broken safety features, and malfunctioning emergency switches. In addition, both companies failed to follow state laws regarding the preservation of evidence and the reporting of escalator-related injuries.
Key Failures Include:
- Unmaintained Escalator: A dangerously large gap between the steps and the side skirt allowed A.W.’s hand to be pulled into the escalator.
- Inoperable Safety Features: The escalator’s skirt safety switches, which should have automatically stopped the escalator when an obstruction occurred, were defective and failed to engage.
- Failure to Preserve Evidence: Following the incident, the escalator was immediately put back in service without the required investigation by state authorities, resulting in spoliation of critical evidence.
The Williams family is seeking more than $1,000,000 in damages for A.W.’s life-altering injuries, emotional distress, and ongoing medical needs. The lawsuit also calls for industry-wide accountability to prevent such tragedies from occurring in the future.
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ABOUT BEN CRUMP LAW
Through his work, nationally renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump has spearheaded a legal movement to better protect the rights of marginalized citizens. He has led landscape-changing civil rights cases and represented clients in a wide range of areas including civil rights, personal injury, labor and employment, class actions, and more. Ben Crump Law is dedicated to holding the powerful accountable. For more information, visit bencrump.com.
