Parents of boy injured in rock climbing accident sue Navy Pier

The parents of an 8-year-old Michigan boy have filed a lawsuit against Navy Pier, alleging workers failed to follow basic safety protocols after their son fell from the top of a 24-foot climbing wall in July.

The complaint, filed Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court, claims workers did not properly secure the boy to the wall, and there was nothing on the ground to help cushion the fall, which left him with severe injuries all over his body. The accident was caught on video.

Erin and Gideon Brewer, from Grand Rapids, along with their Chicago-based lawyer Steve Levin, held a news conference Wednesday to discuss the lawsuit and the accident that has shaken the family.

“This is the biggest nightmare of our entire life,” Erin said. “It’s something that myself and my husband, George and his two brothers are dealing with everyday, and we don’t want this to happen to anybody ever again.”

Brewer said George has been making progress in his recovery. After the fall, he stayed at Lurie Children’s Hospital for six days, where he underwent several surgeries. He has since returned to school in Michigan, starting with half days and gradually working up to full days.

“He’s getting there, but mentally, emotionally, it’s still very much a struggle,” Erin said.

In a statement to the Tribune, Navy Pier officials declined to comment on the lawsuit.

“We have not seen a lawsuit. It is our standard practice not to comment on litigation,” the statement read.

The Brewers said they were on their annual summer trip to Chicago with their three young sons. On July 27, they said they took the children to the Navy Pier’s climbing wall attraction. The parents had taken the boys to the attraction the day prior and the father and children all participated, they said.

Erin said the boys “love to climb things” and begged to go back, so they took them again the following night. The attraction was the “highlight of the trip” so far, she said.

When George took his turn to climb, the attendant put a harness on him but not did not attach the safety rope, which they had done the previous day, according to the parents. Levin said the attendant told George to press the buzzer, which acts as the signal to start climbing.

George began scaling the wall, and Erin started filming him, according to a news release from the Brewers’ attorneys. Not knowing he wasn’t properly secured, the family cheered him on, the release said.

After reaching the top, George let go of the wall to rappel down and plunged 24 feet onto the concrete pavement, according to the release. The safety rope, if attached, would have helped him descend safely, said Levin. There also was no mattress or netting to help cushion potential falls, according to Levin.

Erin gasped loudly as she saw him hit the ground, cutting off the video. The Brewer twins, 5 years old at the time, also witnessed their brother’s fall, she said.

“They saw the entire thing, it was unexplainable,’” she said.

The parents said they thought their son was dead and screamed for help.

According to Levin, it was clear the boy suffered serious injuries from the fall, but Navy Pier officials did not seek medical attention. Bystanders called 911 and helped the family before paramedics arrived, he said.

The 8-year-old was taken by ambulance to Lurie Children’s Hospital, where he underwent treatment and had three surgeries, his mom said. She said he had another surgery after they returned to Grand Rapids.

Describing his injuries, which extended from his face to his ankles, Erin said George broke his tibia, femur, pelvis and chin. He also had cracked teeth and a concussion.

For several months, he was confined to a wheelchair, his parents said. He is now able to walk with the assistance of a walker, according to a release from the attorneys. He continues to receive extensive physical therapy, it said.

George will undergo surgery in January and additional surgeries are expected, the parents said. For Erin, she said it’s been painful to see her child not be able to enjoy the activities he used to, such as playing soccer or running around with brothers and friends.

“It’s infuriating because this was 100% preventable,” Erin said. “This should have never happened.”

Erin said returning to Chicago has brought back memories of his first days and weeks in recovery, seeing him “in agony.”

“Hearing your child asking if he’s going to die — he’s just an 8-year-old boy,” she said. “It’s like his innocence has been taken from him. It should have been a fun experience, and it couldn’t have been worse.”

In statements obtained by the law office, Levin said the operators admitted to authorities that they did not secure the boy properly. They also claimed they did not see him climb up or fall, saying they were “distracted,” according to Levin.

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“Child safety in this type of attraction is a zero-tolerance business,” Levin said. “It is no excuse to say they were distracted. It was no excuse to say this was happening near closing time. It is no excuse to blame an 8-year-old child or the parents for something that is fundamental. They undertook the obligation to ensure George was safely attached to the wall, and they did not fulfill that obligation.”

Levin questioned Navy Pier’s supposed lack of response to the incident, which happened about four months ago. He said representatives from Navy Pier never reached out to check on George after the incident.

“Don’t they know what happened?” Levin said. “Didn’t they investigate it? … There’s a lot of questions that Navy Pier has to answer in this case. I would suspect, by this time, they have their answer.”

“We don’t know what permanent injury could have occurred to his mind and body. But I’ll say this, whatever that injury is, these parents’ commitment to George is going to make that as little as possible.”

In addition to the Navy Pier, Spectrum Sports and the two employees who were operating the climbing wall were named in the lawsuit. Gideon Brewer said he hopes to hold Navy Pier accountable for what happened to their son and prevent it from happening to another family.

“It’s a top tourist destination in the country. …We trusted them to take care of our son, and they failed,” he said. “It’s just a heads up to other parents, no matter where you are, you can’t let your guard down.”