A family in Naples, Florida, whose home was struck by debris that fell to Earth from outer space and punched a hole in the roof is pursuing $80,000 from Nasa in compensation for damages.
The law firm Cranfill Sumner said in a press release that it filed a claim on behalf of plaintiff Alejandro Otero and his family.
A metallic cylinder slab from a cargo pallet that had been released by the International Space Station in 2021 hit the Otero family home on 8 March 2024 while their son Daniel was home. No one was injured, though it created a hole in the roof and floor.
Otero told Wink News that the object almost hit his son, who was two rooms over.
The US space agency later confirmed the debris was from its flight support equipment. A section of the debris remained intact rather than disintegrating after it entered Earth’s atmosphere before falling to the surface.
80,000 seem like a reasonable amount.
That was my thought as well. Seems like a reasonable amount to cover repairs and some extra without being excessive.
I’d be asking for more — emotional distress, rent to live somewhere else while they fixed my house for months, additional money for the inconvenience.
You overestimate the worth of your inconvenience.
I very much don’t. My time is valuable.
I hate frivolous lawsuits as much as anyone, but this seems very reasonable. Fix my stuff and let me keep the piece and we’re cool.
I thought the same thing. This doesn’t seem frivolous at all. They’re not claiming that they’re living in constant fear of the sky falling.
And I’m with ya, I’d totally want to keep the debris.
Yeah some people would bubble this lawsuit as like “we’re seeking millions in psychological damages” but 80k is what I would expect for home repair and a little “you almost killed our kid”
Probably just suing so that insurance covers it.
Just a matter of time before they add a higher deductible specifically for space junk. 😒
NASA probably doesn’t want to pay this because it would set a precedent that they have to pay for other space debris incidents. The days of counting on debris landing somewhere harmless or burning up in the atmosphere would be over.
Good. It’s a flawed system that did damage to someone’s home and almost killed their kid.
