Years after a tragic bridge collapse killed one construction worker and seriously injured several others in Clay County, Missouri, three survivors have filed lawsuits seeking damages from the county and two engineering firms, according to court records.

On October 26, 2022, 22-year-old Connor R. Ernst of California, Missouri, was killed when a bridge under construction on NE 148th Street collapsed during a concrete pour, burying him and several co-workers in wet concrete.

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Now, three survivors — Kaden Bax, Colton Wells, and Braden Birdsong — are pursuing compensation through individual lawsuits filed May 1 in Clay County Circuit Court. Their suits claim they suffered not only serious physical injuries but also lasting mental health impacts, including post-traumatic stress and anxiety, stemming from the collapse.

The legal filings allege that the engineering firms involved were negligent in designing and inspecting the temporary structural supports known as falsework, which failed under the weight of the concrete. The lawsuits also hold Clay County, the landowner overseeing the project, liable for permitting dangerous working conditions to persist.

“It was foreseeable to (engineers on the project) that failure of the falsework during the concrete pour could and would cause serious bodily injury to workers on the project, including death,” the lawsuits claim.

The bridge project was intended to replace an aging two-lane wooden bridge roughly 27 miles northeast of Kansas City. Closed since 2016, the bridge was undergoing reconstruction beginning in 2021. Clay County had contracted WSP USA Inc. for construction inspection services, while Crockett Engineering Consultants, LLC, was hired by Lehman Construction Company to design the temporary supports.

According to the suits, Crockett Engineering allegedly produced incomplete and inadequate designs that failed to meet industry standards and did not ensure the falsework could safely hold the concrete’s weight. WSP, tasked with inspecting the project, allegedly failed to detect or report the deficiencies, contributing to the disaster.

As of May 2, court records did not list legal counsel for the engineering firms, and attorneys representing Clay County had not responded to media inquiries.

Tim Van Ronzelen, attorney for the three workers, explained why the cases were filed separately: “Each of these plaintiffs suffered individual injuries which are different from each other so they are filed separately,” Van Ronzelen said in an email. “The allegations of negligence against the defendants are the same.”

Van Ronzelen also represented the Ernst family following Connor’s death. That case has been resolved through a confidential settlement, he confirmed.

Harrowing Experiences in the Collapse

The lawsuits detail the terrifying moments each worker endured. Bax, according to his filing, was standing on the bridge when the falsework gave way, causing him to plunge to the creek below and become buried up to his waist in wet concrete. He managed to break free and joined others in searching for Ernst, whom they found drowned beneath the collapsed structure. Bax’s injuries included a knee sprain, bruises, cuts, and concrete burns, along with ongoing mental health struggles.

Wells’ lawsuit describes being pinned by tons of wet concrete for half an hour, with only his face exposed and barely able to breathe. Rescue workers eventually pulled him out from under broken plywood. His injuries included cuts, bruises, concrete burns, and poisoning from concrete exposure. The trauma of witnessing Ernst’s death directly below where he was trapped continues to affect him, the suit says.

Birdsong was buried up to his neck in concrete for 30 minutes, the lawsuit says. Immobile, he kept screaming so rescuers could locate him. He suffered concrete burns, poisoning, and emotional trauma, including ongoing post-traumatic stress, according to his legal filing.

All three workers are seeking compensation through jury trials, with claims covering both physical injuries and emotional distress.

Company History of Safety Violations

Lehman Construction, the employer of the injured workers, has a past record of safety violations, according to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data. In 2017, the company was cited for three serious general safety violations, including failing to provide emergency equipment like ring buoys and a skiff. Those issues were corrected, and Lehman paid a fine of $9,507.

In 2019, OSHA again cited Lehman, this time for violations related to trench safety, including the failure to provide an adequate means of egress and take precautions against accumulated water. Those violations were resolved, and the company paid $8,619 in fines, with one violation later downgraded to a less severe classification.

As of early May, no court hearings have been scheduled for the new lawsuits filed by Bax, Wells, and Birdsong, according to online court records.

Originally reported by Kendrick Calfee in Construction equipment.