Thompson v. Warehouse Corp. of America, Inc.
Also decided on this docket: La. Ct. App. 3d Cir., April 9, 1980 383 So. 2d 74; La. Ct. App. 1st Cir., November 12, 1968 216 So. 2d 93; La. Ct. App. 1st Cir., April 28, 1950 46 So. 2d 138; La., December 15, 1879 31 La. 859
Thompson v. Warehouse Corp. of America, Inc., 337 So. 2d 572 (La. Ct. App. 4th Cir. 1976).
The holding in the court’s own words
We hold that negligent maintenance of a sprinkler system, which may result in a fire's burning more fiercely or with denser smoke or otherwise more dangerously, is not a breach of dutyfault within La.
Quoted verbatim from the opinion — no paraphrase, nothing generated. Not yet human-reviewed. How we find the holding.
Cited by
- Henry v. Barlow 901 So. 2d 1207 La. Ct. App. 3d Cir. 2005
- Randy James Henry, Etc. v. Danny L. Barlow La. Ct. App. 3d Cir. 2005
- Holloway v. Midland Risk Ins. Co. 759 So. 2d 309 La. Ct. App. 2d Cir. 2000
- Richter v. Provence Royal Street Co. 700 So. 2d 1180 La. Ct. App. 1st Cir. 1997
- Mullins v. State Farm Fire and Cas. Co. 697 So. 2d 750 La. Ct. App. 1st Cir. 1997
- Worley v. Winston 550 So. 2d 694 La. Ct. App. 2d Cir. 1989
- Bourgeois v. Duplessis 540 So. 2d 397 La. Ct. App. 1st Cir. 1989
- Sayes v. Pilgrim Manor Nursing Home, Inc. 536 So. 2d 705 La. Ct. App. 3d Cir. 1988
- Raziano v. Lincoln Property Co. 520 So. 2d 1213 La. Ct. App. 5th Cir. 1988
- Holdsworth v. Renegades of Louisiana, Inc. 516 So. 2d 1299 La. Ct. App. 2d Cir. 1987
- Chinigo v. Geismar Marine, Inc. 512 So. 2d 487 La. Ct. App. 1st Cir. 1987
- MAYOR & COUNCIL ETC. v. Jesse J. Fontenot 460 So. 2d 685 La. Ct. App. 1st Cir. 1984
Authorities cited
Identified automatically; this list may not be exhaustive.
- Langlois v. Allied Chemical Corporation 258 La. 1067
Opinion text
337 So.2d 572 (1976) Samuel D. THOMPSON, husband of/and Joan Degeorge v. WAREHOUSE CORPORATION OF AMERICA, INC., et al. No. 7452. Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit. August 31, 1976. *573 Donald F. Deboisblanc, New Orleans, for plaintiff-appellant. Francis G. Weller, Russell L. Dornier (Deutsch, Kerrigan & Stiles, New Orleans), for defendants-appellees. Before REDMANN, GULOTTA and STOULIG, JJ. REDMANN, Judge. A firefighter appeals from a summary judgment dismissing his action against a cotton warehouseman for injuries (including an acute myocardial infarction) sustained in fighting a fire in the warehouse. The warehouse sprinkler system was partially inoperative because of closed valves that should have been open. The question is whether defendant is responsible for injuries resulting to a firefighter from its negligence in not having the valves open. We hold that negligent maintenance of a sprinkler system, which may result in a fire's burning more fiercely or with denser smoke or otherwise more dangerously, is not a breach of dutyfault within La.C.C. 2315towards the firefighters who may come to fight the fire. Plaintiff correctly argues that a firefighter is not without remedy for any risk whatsoever; see Langlois v. Allied Chemical Corp., 1971, 258 La. 1067 , 249 So.2d 133 . But we are unable to distinguish negligent sprinkler maintenance from ordinary negligence which might contribute to the start of the fire. We deem it unreasonable to hold that an owner owes it to firefighters not to let his building catch fire. To the contrary: it is the firefighters' duty to the property owners (and neighbors) to save them from their negligence. In the absence of proof of personal negligence so gross as to be tantamount to arson or to trap-setting by the owner, we cannot hold a building owner liable to firefighters for negligence causing or worsening fire which caused the firefighters' injury. Affirmed.