CHARLESTON — A Chapmanville woman is suing Charleston Area Medical Center alleging she was injured in the hospital's cafeteria due to a wet floor.
Jessica Ann Cook was at the defendant's general division facility with her family on June 30, 2021, and went into the cafeteria, which is open to the public, to enter the dining line to purchase something to eat, according to a complaint filed in Kanawha Circuit Court.
Cook claims when she reached the bottom of the stairs leading into the cafeteria, she slipped and fell on a wet floor and was injured.
CAMC negligently failed to maintain its cafeteria in a safe condition knowing or having reason to know that the floor contained a hazard and knowing or having reason to know that patrons would utilize the cafeteria for dining, according to the suit.
"That the plaintiff asserts, that Defendant Charleston Area Medical Center Inc. negligently failed to properly alert cafeteria patrons of the potential hazard of a wet substance on the cafeteria floor, specifically the defendant nor any of defendant's agents, servants, and/or employees warned the plaintiff of the hazardous condition on the cafeteria floor," the complaint states.
The defendant failed to rest or displace any signage warning of the hazardous condition on the cafeteria floor and was negligent in allowing its cafeteria to maintain a hazardous condition that presented a danger to patrons and failed to properly warn patrons of the potential risk, according to the suit.
Cook claims the defendant knew or should have known patrons would need to traverse the cafeteria floor where the hazardous condition was present.
"The plaintiff alleges that, but for Defendant's negligence in failing to clean and/or repair the hidden defect, the Plaintiff would not have fallen," the complaint states.
Cook is seeking compensatory damages with pre-judgment interest. She is represented by Robert B. Kuenzel of Kuenzel Law in Chapmanville.
The case is assigned to Circuit Judge Carrie Webster.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 23-C-559