Widow of Man Killed in Huntington Beach Boating Accident Seeks $5 Million

The widow of a man who drove a boat into a bridge at Huntington Harbor is asking the city for more than $5 million as part of her contention that the Gilbert Drive Bridge caused the Huntington Beach boating accident last June 27. Law enforcement officials who investigated the accident said that the woman’s husband was driving at an excessive speed. His blood-alcohol level was nearly double the legal limit when the accident occurred.

The Huntington Beach boating accident also claimed the lives of two other men who were on the boat when it crashed into the bridge. Another man on the boat was knocked backward and unconscious by the impact, but survived. Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol deputies said that it is each boater’s responsibility to watch for bridges, obey posted speed limits and no-wake signs and not operate their watercraft while intoxicated.

The widow contends that Huntington Beach did not “properly illuminate a navigation hazard on the bridge,” according to the claim filed Sept. 10. Toxicology reports indicated that her husband’s blood-alcohol level was 0.13 percent. As with motor vehicles, the legal blood-alcohol limit for being legally drunk is 0.08 percent. Witnesses who saw the accident said that they saw three men aboard the inflatable boat speeding and making sharp turns and circles in the harbor before the crash.

Huntington Beach boating accident lawyer Samer Habbas has made helping the victims of boat accidents one of the priorities of his law practice. This Orange County personal injury attorney helps the victims of boating accidents receive the fair and just compensation they deserve to help with the costs of recovery, lost wages and other expenses caused by the accident. Call the Law Offices of Huntington Beach boating accident attorney Samer Habbas to schedule a free consultation about your case.