Teacher injured in Fort Gibraltar walkway collapse sues city, Festival du Voyageur
Woman fractured part of spine, suffered injuries to neck, foot: lawsuit
The City of Winnipeg and Festival du Voyageur are facing a third lawsuit in connection with the collapse of the elevated walkway at Fort Gibraltar last May.
A teacher has joined two sets of parents in filing separate suits against the city, which owns the land beneath the Winnipeg historic site, and the festival, which manages the site, after a wooden walkway at the fort collapsed during a school field trip.
A statement of claim filed March 28 in the Manitoba Court of King's Bench says Angelina Constantine sustained "numerous and permanent injuries" after the walkway suddenly broke, causing her to fall about six metres to the ground.
The claim says she suffers from a fracture to her thoracic spine (the spine's middle section), along with injuries to her neck and right foot, and psychological injuries.
Neither the city or the festival have filed statements of defence. Constantine's lawyer, Alyssa M. Mariani, confirmed her client is a teacher.
Constantine had been on a field trip with Grade 5 students at Winnipeg's St. John's-Ravenscourt School on May 31, when part of the walkway at the replica wooden fort unexpectedly collapsed, sending 17 students and one adult to hospital.
Constantine was being led by a tour guide believed to work for the festival, the claim says.
The lawsuit says the city and the festival failed to make sure the structure was inspected and maintained properly and was safe, among other allegations. It also alleges the city failed to ensure it was properly designed and constructed.
A city spokesperson previously told CBC News the last time the walkway was inspected before the collapse was 2006, and it had last been repaired in 2004.
An engineering assessment found that the walkway had a rotten support beam and possible damage from carpenter ants, according to documents obtained by Radio-Canada through a freedom of information request in October.
Constantine's injuries resulted solely from the city and the festival's beach of duty or negligence, the suit alleges. She is seeking punitive, aggravated and exemplary damages, and claims she suffers from a loss of income, costs of past and future care and medical expenses.
The other two lawsuits were filed in August 2023 and February 2024 by two pairs of parents whose children were also allegedly injured after falling from the walkway. Both the city and the festival denied the parents' accusations of negligence in statements of defence filed in November for the August suit.
The festival also filed a statement of defence for the February claim.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
A spokesperson for the festival said it does not have any comment to make on the latest lawsuit. The city also said it has no comment to provide.
The walkway and the wall that surrounded it have been replaced with a 2.5-metre residential fence.
WATCH | Collapsed Fort Gibraltar walkway shown in drone footage:
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