By Tom Bowler
It is interesting to note bleacher injuries are in the public eye constantly. One only needs to go to the newspapers or Internet to find stories relating to bleacher injuries. For example,, in the fall of 2010, 12 students were injured in a “bleacher” collapse at a football game at East Carolina University’s Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Actually, this was a concrete grandstand with galvanized bleacher seats bolted to the permanent structure. The seats were supported by a cantilever brace, and the bolts came loose. At the time of the collapse, the students were jumping up and down on the bleachers.
Mishaps can come in the form of fallen branches on bleachers. Last fall, the Hartford Courant, in Hartford, Conn., reported a tree branch fell upon two young girls, ages six and eight, injuring them and their aunt. The takeaway lesson from such an incident is that we need to be vigilant in the safe placement of bleachers at sporting events. In concert with this notion is the fact that if bleachers are to be placed under trees, we need to do a careful inspection by a trained arborist.
This article will explore the area of bleacher standards, as well as making the reader aware of bleacher litigation within the field. Bleachers are used at many different levels throughout the country. They are used in youth sports, high school sports and collegiate events. Bleachers may take the form of the moveable variety or the permanent type. Bleachers are used indoors and outdoors for athletic events. While many of these bleachers are risk-free, some have definite risk issues for the spectator. It should be recognized that the athlete can be at risk in some cases with buffer zones being ignored, should the player run out of bounds. The participant can run into bleachers if the “buffer zone” is not properly circumscribed around the court or field. Buffer zones are areas between the court or field which are unobstructed areas for the safety of the participant. In this fashion, an athlete will not impact trees, picnic tables, light stanchions, or bleachers close to the playing area. Rule books will dictate the appropriate setback for safety for this buffer zone.
It is recognized there are standards within the field of bleachers. Briefly, a standard may be defined as, “… Norms established by authority, research, custom, or general consent to be used as criteria and guides in establishing and evaluating programs, leadership, areas, facilities, and plans; as measures of quantity, quality, weight, extent, or value.” [Glossary, p. 9].
In a court of law, standards are crucial to our profession. If there are no standards to reinforce a point, the case will be based upon the “standard of practice” within the profession. The “standard of practice” may be somewhat tenuous in proving a point [i. e. what people usually do within the profession].
It should be recognized within the bleacher industry, states and local communities will abide by existing codes within their locales. Therefore, universally these codes may not be applied throughout all 50 states. Case in point, the building code and fire code in the Connecticut have various requirements for spectator seating. Therefore, one should seek out the state’s building department or state’s fire marshal, if you have specific questions concerning your bleachers. It is interesting to note Little League types of bleachers with fewer than 100 seats are exempt from required codes for spectators in Connecticut.
The International Code Council is a promulgator of codes. In Connecticut, the codes have adopted the International Code Council’s ICC 300. It is interesting to note the codes are revised every three years. The title of the ICC 300 code is “Standard for Bleachers, Folding and Telescopic Seating, and Grandstands.” This standard is very concise and runs 14 pages.
This code points out several safety issues that can be summarized in bullet format.
• Inspections = minimum, 1 time per year
• Outdoors, bleachers 10 ft. from buildings/lot lines
• Seat boards & footboards, 30” + above ground/floor, opening closed
• Will not permit 4” sphere to pass through
• Bench seating, 18” is width of one person
• Stepped aisles, ramps etc. 30” above grade, 42” guardrail is needed
Obviously, children can slip through the seat board to the footboard spacing and a serious injury may occur. If the spacing will not permit a 4-inch sphere to fit through, this would prevent children from accidentally falling through the spacing and getting seriously injured.
Unless we are cognizant of the ICC 300 standard, bleacher litigation will continue to prevail. Additionally, we need to be most vigilant with maintenance in inspecting indoor and outdoor bleachers. In a case in the Midwest, a young female in high school was watching a high school baseball game on outdoor bleachers. She decided to exit the stands by using the seat boards as the aisle. When she got to the end of the railing system with chain mesh wire fence, she dismounted. In doing so, she amputated her little finger on her right hand, since the mesh wire on the fence created a hook protruding upward.
Some classic cases in bleacher personal injury law have occurred, within the field of litigation. For example, the classic case of Rispone v. Louisiana State University, 1994. In this case involving bleachers, Joseph Rispone was attending the Alex Box Stadium on the campus of LSU. He went to the stadium to watch the college’s baseball team. LSU would be in the College World Series if they won this game. The fact pattern supports the fact that since it had rained, the game had to be rescheduled twice. Rispone decided to sit out in left field in some temporary bleachers. He had to walk through puddles to get out to this part of the complex. Thus, his shoes were wet. He was descending the bleachers and fell sustaining an Achilles tendon rupture and two broken ribs. The breach was a non-uniform step. In this particular case, the award for Rispone was $80 thousand for general damages.
From the standpoint of the appeals process within the legal court system, the case of Jeanine Pryor v. Iberia Parish School Board [2011] is particularly interesting. The fact pattern of the case is as follows. Jeanine Pryor was a 69-year-old plaintiff who was attending a high school football game to watch her grandson play. The game was between New Iberia High School and Barbe High School in Louisiana. The date of the incident was Oct. 29, 2004. Her grandson was playing for the visiting team i. e. Barbe High School at the Lloyd G. Porter Stadium, which was under the auspices of the Iberia Parish School Board. When she arrived at the game, on the home’s west side of the field, there were concrete stands provided with ramps for the disabled. It should be noted that Pryor had hip surgery and was in a recovery period. She opted to sit on the east side which was traditionally for the visiting teams. However, this bleacher area did not provide for handicapped accessibility. She noted ascending the bleacher seat boards an 18- inch gap she had to navigate near the bottom section of the bleachers. She successfully managed to get her body over this obstacle on her ascent. When, it came to half time, she needed to descend the bleachers, at which time she fell and suffered a broken leg.
The case went to court. Pryor claimed “the bleachers were defective.”
The trial court did not find in favor of Pryor and the case was dismissed. However, on appeal, Pryor prevailed and the damages were apportioned as the Iberia Parish School Board was 70 percent at fault and she was 30 percent at fault.
However, at this point in time, one would think the case is over. On March 15, 2011, the Supreme Court of Louisiana basically wiped out the award and overturned and reversed the Appeals Court verdict. The main consideration was the factor “whether the bleachers are unreasonably dangerous.”
The Supreme Court applied four basic tenets to the case as a yardstick. These may be
summarized as:
— Gap in the bleachers was not defective; it was part of the existing design in 1969 or 1970.
— The harm involved versus the known obvious risk to the user.
— It was recognized on the home side of the field there were accessible stands.
— Pryor indeed chose to increase her risk by opting to sit on the visitors’ side of the stadium where no accessibility existed.
This court reversed the Appeals Court decision on the fault and damages. It is curious how the legal and justice system works The case went on for six and a half years!
In closing, indoor and outdoor bleachers need to be inspected on a regular basis. There are codes that apply to bleachers. One needs to be familiar with these codes, if one assumes the risk manager’s role within an agency [i.e. school department, park department etc.]. It is evident by case law, as well as incidents reported in the newspaper and on the internet, bleacher injuries are occurring. We need to be prepared and knowledgeable within this field.
References:
http://leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx?xmldoc=19941368637So2d731_11031.xml&docb…]
[Retrieved on: February 12, 2011].
http://www.injuryboard.com/printfriendly.aspx?id=284836 [Retrieved on February 12, 2011].
http://www.ncaabbs.com/showthread.php?pid=5702908 [Retrieved on March 01, 2011].
http://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2010/04/16/2010-8781/international-code-council-t
[Retrieved on: February 24, 2011].
International Code Council, [2007]. Standard for bleachers, folding and telescopic seating, and grandstands. Washington, D. C.: International Code Council.
Personal correspondence, with CT. Office of State Fire Marshal’s office on February 23, 2011.
Sawyer, T. H. [Ed]. [2005]. Facility design and management for health, fitness, physical activity, recreation and sports facility development. [11th ed.]. Champaign, Illinois: Sagamore Publishing.
State of Louisiana, Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, Jeanine Pryor v. Iberia Parish School Board, Appeal from the Sixteenth Judicial District Court, Parish of Iberia, No. 106,274G, Reversed and Rendered, p. 3
Supreme Court of Louisiana No. 2010-C-1683, Jeanine Pryor v. Iberia Parish School Board, on Writ of Certiorari to the Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, Parish of Iberia, p. 3
Vandermey, A. W. [October 17, 2010]. Limb traps 2 girls, woman. Hartford Courant.
p. B1-p.B2
Vandermey, A. W. [October 18, 2010] Coach recalls rescue effort at city park. Hartford
Courant. p. 33
Tom Bowler taught physical education in the Vernon Public Schools, in Vernon, Connecticut, for 33 years until his “retirement” in 1999. He has been involved in over 300 cases in the last 18 years acting as an expert witness on behalf of either the plaintiff party or defendant party. He has been deposed 45 times. He has testified at trials in New York State, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maryland for a total of seven appearances. He has also been involved in one arbitration. Tom received his B. S. degree in physical education from the University of Connecticut in 1966. His master’s degree was earned at Springfield College in 1973 in physical education. Tom earned a Certificate of Advance Graduate Studies from the University of Connecticut, in 1981 in the “administration and supervision of special education.”
