The estates of two of the victims killed in the Philadelphia medical jet crash earlier this year are suing the company that operated the plane.
On November 17, the estates of Lizeth Murillo Osuna and Dr Raul Meza Arredondo sued medical air operator Med Jets, accusing the company of carelessness, negligence, recklessness, and wrongful death. It argues that Med Jets failed to operate its planes in a safe manner, according to NBC 10.
“Today’s filing is an important step on behalf of the victims of this tragedy to hold those responsible for this deadly crash fully accountable,” the lawyers representing the plaintiffs wrote. “Unfortunately, given the lack of functioning onboard recording systems, much remains to be determined as to the cause of this crash. This litigation will help the victims get the answers as to why their loves ones senselessly died and why an entire community was placed in harm’s way.”
The Independent has requested comment from Med Jets, which also does business under the name Jet Rescue.
On January 31, a Med Jets Learjet 55 slammed into the ground in a Philadelphia neighborhood just after 6pm. The airplane exploded and sparked a large fire. The wreckage field left in the wake of the explosion was around 1,410 feet long and 640 feet wide, according to federal investigators.
“The wreckage was highly fragmented. Wreckage and debris penetrated numerous homes, commercial buildings, and vehicles in the area, resulting in extensive fire and impact damage,” according to an National Transportation Safety Board report.
All six people on-board died. Osuna, her 11-year-old daughter Valentina Guzman Murillo, and Arredondo were all passengers on the flight. The other victims on-board were Captain Alan Alejandro Montoya Perales, co-pilot Josue de Jesus Juarez Juarez, and paramedic Rodrigo Lopez Padilla.
Also killed in the crash was Steven Dreuitt, 37, who was was driving with his 9-year-old son and girlfriend when the plane crashed into the road they were traveling on. His girlfriend, Dominique Goods-Burke, who was also in the vehicle, died three months after the crash from injuries she suffered that day.
Dreuitt’s son and dozens of other people were injured, and approximately 350 properties in northeast Philadelphia were damaged in the wreck.
The airplane was leaving Philadelphia bound for Springfield, Missouri and then onward to its final destination in Tijuana, Mexico. Both Osuna and Arredondo were described in the lawsuit as Mexican citizens. Arredondo lived in Atizapan de Zaragoza, and Osuna lived in Ensenada, approximately 71 miles south of Tijuana.
Valentina, the 11-year-old patient, was on her way home after spending five months undergoing treatment at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia.
According to a National Transportation Safety Board investigation, a flight recorder recovered from the wreckage was not working. The investigation also found that no one on board made any distress calls to air traffic controllers.
Additional lawsuits are also being prepared. Attorney Andrew Parker Felix is representing a man who was driving home in his SUV at the time of the crash and whose vehicle became engulfed in ignited liquid jet fuel. He suffered severe burns and spent 11 days in an intensive care unit, the suit says.
According to NBC 10, at least three other law firms are also representing victims of the crash.
