Three families from Dittmer and House Springs have filed a lawsuit against the Grand Plaza Hotel in Branson because five children were allegedly injured while using the hotel’s indoor pool. The lawsuit claims a hotel employee used dangerous chemicals in the water while people were in the pool.
The lawsuit was filed Feb. 1 in Taney County Circuit Court and claims the Grand Plaza Hotel and its employees disregarded the health and safety of the hotel’s guest by these alleged negligent acts.
The suit is seeking damages in excess of $25,000 for each of the five children, court costs and the costs for future potential future medical treatment.
The children’s parents filed the lawsuit on their behalf, and none of the adults or children are named. The children and their parents are identified by initials.
“When this type of negligence happens it is very alarming, severe and scary,” said Chris Finney, the families’ attorney. “The other issue with it is it is so easily preventable. This is a never event. It should have never ever have happened.”
The lawsuit says the families stayed at the hotel over Mother’s Day weekend in May 2021. The families were in Branson because some of the children were participating in a youth baseball tournament.
On May 8, 2021, members of the families were in the pool when a maintenance employee allegedly used ProGuard Calcium Hypochlorite Granular to treat the water. The lawsuit said the chemical is a commercial-grade pool cleaner that has a warning label that says, “no one can be in the pool when chemicals are being added directly to the pool.”
The employee allegedly not only put the chemical into the water, but the chemical also fell onto people in the pool, according to the lawsuit.
Those in the pool allegedly immediately had adverse reactions to exposure of the chemical, including burning eyes and skin, chest tightening, bloody nose and vomiting. One of the girls in the water sustained permanent damage to her lungs and throat, according to the lawsuit.
Finney said the girl’s lung and throat injuries will require ongoing treatment due to the burns she sustained. He said the children were between the ages of 8 to 12 when they were injured by the chemical.
“These are tough people,” Finney said of the families. “They don’t have much of a choice right now to keep moving as we pursue the case. They are doing their best to manage what is going on with their kids and are hoping to seek some kind of resolution.”
The lawsuit said Branson Police investigated the incident, and the department determined the chemical was applied to the pool water twice while guests were swimming, despite the treatment only being reported one time by the hotel. The suit claims at least 12 children needed medical treatment and several others experienced symptoms but did not seek treatment.
“Based on what we know, we feel very strongly about the case,” Finney said. “We look forward to pursuing it further.”
The Grand Plaza Hotel did not respond to an email asking about the lawsuit.