The wife of a man run over and killed by a vehicle at the Port of Long Beach in January has filed a claim against the city of Long Beach seeking just over $60 million in damages.
The January 15 industrial accident at 301 Mediterranian Way killed 64-year-old Carson resident Chulaih Ang, who worked as a clerk at the port, authorities said.
A claim for damages is typically followed by a lawsuit unless the city decides to pay the money. In her claim, Pattama Ang alleges the city is responsible for her husband’s death because it failed to create a safe walkway for pedestrians alongside the area where he was crushed by a transtainer—a large gantry crane used to load and unload a stack of containers.
“The City of Long Beach created the above described dangerous conditions and had sufficient prior notice in time to take protective action,” according to the claim, which was submitted to the city last month. “This dangerous condition of public property caused the death of Chulaih Ang.”
When officers responded to the port at around 3:45 p.m. on Jan. 15, they found Ang lying facedown next to the bloodied wheels of a transtainer. He had been crushed and suffered severe injuries to the upper and lower body, according to a report from the Long Beach Police Department.
As a clerk, Ang was responsible for identifying containers that need to be moved. It appears he was updating his paperwork when a port worker operating a large crane accidentally ran him over, according to the LBPD.
Pattama Ang’s claim says the city failed to put up any warning signs or markings that would advise workers operating vehicles to watch for the pedestrian walkways.
The Long Beach City Attorney’s Office declined to provide more information, citing that the claim will most likely end up going to litigation where it will be investigated before any action is taken.
Long Beach has 45 more days to deny or approve the claim, according to Pattama Ang’s attorney, Preston Easley. If the claim is denied, Easley said the next step would be to sue the city.
In addition to filing the claim, the Law Offices of Preston Easley APC have filed a lawsuit against the companies that maintain the cranes.
“I’ve done a lot of crane and forklift cases in my career and usually it takes a while to unearth all the facts that caused the accident,” Easley said.
Worker killed in collision at Port of Long Beach was Carson man