A survivor of the Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami International Airport was “flung into the air” and suffered multiple fractures after the jet hit the van he was sitting in, according to a new lawsuit filed Friday.
Read more Man accused of hitting driver with baseball bat during Miami-Dade road-rage incident
Roosevelt Perdomo Torres survived the Sunday’s crash but five of the other people in the van with him were killed when the plane went speeding off the runway.
Torres and his wife Gladys are suing Amazon, cargo carrier 21 Air, other related entities along with Captain Joseph Carroll and First Officer Jaime Felipe Silva Molina.
According to the lawsuit, Torres and six others, employees of a cleaning service that works at the airport, were in the van wrapping up their eight-hour shift when the collision happened.
“Just moments before impact, Mr. Perdomo Torres saw the enormous cargo aircraft coming towards the van. There was nowhere for him to go and no time to escape. The Boeing 767 struck the van at high speed, leaving it an unrecognizable heap of metal,” the lawsuit said.
The suit goes on to say that Torres was “flung into the air by the impact” but remained conscious as he hit the ground.
The impact crushed and fractured his hand and caused fractures to his leg and ankle, the suit said.
“Fighting for his life amid the chaos, Mr. Perdomo Torres attempted to stand, but was unable to sustain his own weight,” the suit reads. “He was forced to remain on the ground, conscious of his severe injuries, fearing for his life, and fearing for the family members he would leave behind if he perished.”
Read more Hialeah mom accused of burning 10-year-old daughter, tying her to chair
He was eventually found by first responders and rushed to the hospital, and remains in the intensive care unit, said his attorney, Pablo Rojas.
“He was actually able to see the airplane approaching in the last final seconds, I say approaching, barreling towards the van at a very high speed,” Rojas said.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the plane touched down at 181 mph, while the normal landing speed for the Boeing 767 is closer to 155 mph.
Regarding another lawsuit, Amazon released a statement earlier this week.
“The NTSB is on the ground at Miami International Airport conducting their investigation. We’ll fully cooperate with them and support any other investigating authorities and we’ll also continue to coordinate with 21 Air which operated the flight,” the statement reads, in part.
The NTSB’s investigation is ongoing. Rojas said someone needs to be held accountable.
“Multiple people were involved in maintaining the aircraft, operating it, vetting, pilot training, personnel, and how to operate it and all of those safety lapses jointly contributed to this horrific and preventable event,” he said.
Read more Man charged in Biscayne Bay boat hit-and-run that left person hospitalized, records show