A jury has ordered the city of Atlanta to pay $1.4 million to a woman injured in a car crash caused by a missing manhole cover on a Buckhead street. The city says it is considering an appeal.
The Feb. 8 Fulton County Superior Court lawsuit decision, reported by the Daily Report, followed the 2016 accident on one of the city’s main thoroughfares. According to the lawsuit, plaintiff Pamela Dale, a Buckhead resident, was driving home from her job at Phipps Plaza mall when her car hit an open manhole in front of Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant at 3386 Peachtree Road. The impact caused her car to flip over in a crash that injured her.
The lawsuit argued that the manhole was improperly installed, and the Daily Report reported that a key piece of evidence in court was city’s lack of routine inspections of manholes.
The city’s press office did not respond to questions about manhole inspections, only issuing a brief statement saying it is considering an appeal of the decision.
“The city is disappointed, but fully respects the decision of the jury,” the statement said. “At this time, the city is considering its appeal rights.”