Rapper Soulja Boy got into a car accident caused by devastating mudslides and floods in Southern California, but who can be held responsible for the rapper’s property damage?
“While you cannot sue Mother Nature for wreaking havoc, other parties may be held liable if you sustain injuries or property damage due to California mudslides,” says our car accident lawyer Riverside at Law Offices of Howard Kornberg. After the scary incident, which occurred in Malibu, California, on January 5, Soulja Boy took to Twitter to share a photo of his damaged car and wrote in the caption, “My car got stuck too almost went into the ocean,” adding a prayer emoji at the end of the tweet.
Hours after the incident, the 28-year-old rapper got sentimental on Instagram, sharing a screenshot of news coverage and writing in the caption, “I am just thankful to be alive.” Soulja Boy also added that he did not care about his car, because “it’s materialistic you can’t take it with you when you’re gone.”
Soulja Boy was not the only California resident who suffered harm due to an onslaught of mudslides and flash flooding in Southern California. Multiple roads and highways in the area were closed to prevent car accidents.
Damage caused by mudslides in California
For those of you who have no clue how a mudslide can cause so much destructive damage, our Riverside car accident lawyer explains that a mudslide, which is basically a combination of water and loose dirt, can travel as fast as 50 miles per hour in a downhill direction, destroying everything in its path.
Typically, mudslides are caused by rainfall, snowmelt, or water accumulation. Although trees and other debris serve as natural protection against mudflows in California, areas where wildfire or construction projects removed trees and other debris are more at risk for mudslides.
Still, the question “Who can be held liable for property damage and injuries caused by mudslides in California?” remains unanswered. Our car accident attorney in Riverside explains that while you cannot file a lawsuit against Mother Nature, you can potentially sue other people, businesses, or even the government, municipality, county, or city, depending on the circumstances of your particular case.
Who can be sued for your injury or property damage during a mudslide?
If you have been injured in a car accident caused by a mudslide in Riverside, Los Angeles, or elsewhere in California, you may be able to file a lawsuit against parties whose negligent acts or omission to act contributed to the mudflow and/or your injury.
You may be able to sue other people, businesses, the government, city, municipality, or county if any of the following is true:
- Poor road conditions;
- Inadequate road design
- Improper road maintenance;
- Improper design of plumbing systems;
- Inadequately designed drainage systems;
- Acts or omission to act on the part of property owners, construction managers, developers, and others; and
- Failure to take necessary steps after the mudslide has begun.
More often than not, you will need legal help from a car crash attorney to prove that the at-fault party (1) owed you a duty of care, and (2) knew or should have known about the possible consequences of their actions or omission to act.
Since dealing with the consequences of a natural disaster can be rather complicated, a thorough and comprehensive investigation is required in order to find liable parties and establish fault if you were harmed by a mudslide in Riverside, Los Angeles, or elsewhere in California.
Get a free consultation from our skilled attorneys at the Law Offices of Howard Kornberg to discuss your case. Call our offices at 310-997-0904 today.
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