Quadriplegic man loses €1m lawsuit

THE Environment Ministry has been acquitted of the responsibility of an accident which left a man quadriplegic.

In July 2002, the Colombian tourist jumped into the water from Tora Pier in Calvia, which was built for mooring boats. The 47-year-old hit the rocks at the bottom, resulting in a spinal injury.

He filed a €1 million lawsuit against the ministry, which is responsible for the management of the coast. Since the man had jumped from a place where he was not allowed to, the court ruled that he was purely to blame for his predicament.

The claimant’s lawyer stated that since there was no signage on the pier, the tourist could not know whether it was a suitable place to swim or not.

Even if there were no signs, it was “obvious the platform was intended for berthing vessels and the disembarkation of passengers, and therefore not suitable for swimming,” ruled the court.

Photographs submitted by the claimant showed that the rocks could be seen with the naked eye.