Government agencies, responsible for the safety of a public gravel roadway, are being sued in a wrongful death case that alleges that a teenager died in a car accident two years ago due to poor maintenance of the road, as reported by the Missourian.
The suit was filed by D.N. and D.T., parents of E.N., 16 at the time she crashed into a lake alongside the Augusta Parkway.
The bottom road, stretching nearly 2 miles in length, is above a levee. The roadway is the link between Warren and St. Charles counties.
Augusta Parkway in located in Warren County. However, county officials have not maintained the road since a 1993 Missouri River flood. At that time the road was rebuilt with a grant that the town of Augusta procured.
The defendants in the suit are listed as: Warren County, St. Charles County, Franklin County, the town of Augusta, the city of Washington and Three Creeks Village. Each defendant has been cited in the suit for a failure to maintain or improve the roadway properly.
Damages are sought in the amount of $25,000, with additional costs for court and attorney fees.
City Counselor Mark Piontek, who refused to comment, said that the lawsuit will be referred to the city's insurance company. The attorney for Warren County, Jay Levitch, claimed that he had not yet seen the lawsuit and therefore could not comment.
A prepared statement from D.N. read, "(E.N.'s) death was a terrible, avoidable tragedy. Everyone has known for many years just how dangerous that road is and the government leaders have done nothing to fix it; other than the city of Washington leaders who have pleaded with some of the other entities to take corrective action."
D.T. told reporters, "There's been a lot of talk but really no action since (E.N.) died, and long before. Even after we collected money to put up guardrails to help fix the problem, nothing was done. So if no one else is going to do anything, we decided we needed to, so that no other parents have to go through what we've gone through."
The plaintiffs' attorneys noted in their prepared statement that in the last decade no less than 18 traffic mishaps had occurred on the same stretch of road. Four involved overturned vehicles and three involved teenagers ending up in the pond – the same pound where E.N. drowned. In total, two citizens have died and nine more were injured.
According to the plaintiff's statement, a September 2011 Road Safety Audit has been largely ignored.
Allegedly members from the Washington Area Highway Transportation Committee have also been seeking improvements – since the 1990s – on the Augusta Bottom Road. Cited for the delay has been lack of funds, and reluctance, on the part of Warren County. Warren County Presiding Commissioner Arden Engelage told the committee members that E.N. was most likely "driving too fast for conditions."
Engelage added, "…We have to deal with the facts and we have to deal with the taxpayers. We're not trying to be cold. We're trying to keep it as a gravel levee road."
Contact a personal injury lawyer if you believe that you have lost a loved one due to the action, or inaction, of another party.