August 9, 2007

LAWSUIT FILED IN WEST HAVEN FLOODWATER DROWNING

The widower of a local woman caught in a flash flood beneath a railroad overpass last year is blaming his wife's death on police negligence in a lawsuit filed just shy of the Morgan Lane tragedy's one-year anniversary.

Michael A. Padula, as an individual and the administrator of the estate of Gladys E. Padula, is seeking more than $15,000 in damages from the city and three officers who responded to the Aug. 27 accident. Gladys Padula died two days later.

"Our (independent) investigation has shown that if the police officers had intervened in a timely fashion that this tragedy could have been entirely averted," said Padula's attorney, Joel T. Faxon of New Haven. "She could have been saved."

Mayor John M. Picard and police Chief Ronald M. Quagliani declined to comment.

Characterized at the time as a "freakish" accident, the death of Padula, a 47-year-old mother of two, shocked residents who tried to understand how a late-night, torrential downpour caused a 6½-foot-deep pool of rainwater to accumulate beneath the overpass and trap her minivan as she headed to work.

Despite failed attempts to recreate the scene, police closed the case in March unable to explain what caused the water to become so deep.

The lawsuit claims Quagliani, the city and the responding officers — Mark D'Amico, Jay Masi and Stephen Viele — failed to appropriately address the situation.

Specifically, the officers allegedly failed to secure the area prior to the incident "in violation of due care and police procedures," the lawsuit states.

They are also accused of failing to warn the public of the roadway's dangerous condition by not closing or blocking it off.

Overall, the lawsuit claims all the defendants failed to rescue Gladys Padula.

"Her ability to carry on and enjoy all of life's activities has been destroyed," the lawsuit states.

Earlier, prior to being served the lawsuit, Quagliani said he hopes no one experiences a tragedy like that again.

"I can't fathom him not having to live with his wife, and those children to be without a mother," said Quagliani, who is a neighbor of the Padulas.

The investigation records show Masi was called to the Metro-North overpass on a earlier call of a disabled car in about 5 feet of water "creating a hazardous condition ... but not what I believed would be a life-threatening situation for a vehicle operator at that time," Masi wrote in a report.

Masi brought the stranded motorists to Bailey Middle School for an arranged pick up, but his waterlogged cruiser broke down, prompting dispatch to send the other two officers to the overpass.

D'Amico and Viele arrived and, according to D'Amico's incident report, a crying female witness told him that a woman was screaming for help. D'Amico alerted emergency officials and he and Viele jumped into the water.

Responding West Shore firefighters also jumped into the water with one searching from the minivan's roof, the only part not submerged, and another trying to break a window with a sledgehammer, but stopped when a pair of hands was spotted along the surface of the water.

Padula was pulled onto the van's roof and resuscitated before being rushed to Yale-New Haven Hospital. She died there Aug. 29.

Police concluded she somehow exited the vehicle prior to their arrival.

Witnesses also told officers they saw the minivan "traveling fast" toward the overpass until the water swept her van "like a flume ride" further under the bridge. A witness also tried to flag her down moments earlier, but Padula "just waved at him," the police records state.

Michael Padula later told police his 5-foot-tall wife was not a swimmer.

Faxon said "another story" will be revealed.

"The jury will determine the value on this case, but ... no amount of money can replace the loss to this family," Faxon said.

Metro-North officials said any changes to the roadway is a city responsibility.

©New Haven Register 2007