US Government and Northeastern University

Boston, MA: (Sep-09-07) The town of Brookline and four of its firefighters brought a lawsuit against the US Government and Northeastern University, following a 2002 accident and injuries caused by a helicopter landing drill to prepare for a visit by President Bush. The lawsuit claimed that Brookline officials said they had reservations about using the field for this particular exercise. Town officials stated that the government should have known that they should not have made a landing of this scope with this aircraft at Parsons Field. Despite the town's worries, the US Marine Corps proceeded with the drill and landed Chinook-47 helicopters, which were much larger than what town officials had anticipated. Reports showed that two of the firefighters retired due to injuries from the accident. A 57-year-old senior captain suffered numerous fractures, and a 50-year old firefighter sustained a cervical fracture and a ruptured tendon in his knee. Two other firefighters both missed several months of work for less serious injuries.

As part of a settlement reached in US District Court in Boston, the firefighters and some of their spouses will split about $3 million, while the town will receive $800,000 to cover losses associated with the accident. [BOSTON GLOBE: HELICOPTER LANDING DRILL]

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Published on Sep-15-07