Judge Denies Class Action In B93 Flooding Incident

Fairground Flood Trapped Cars

A motion for a class action lawsuit against CLEAR CHANNEL Country WBCT (B93)/GRAND RAPIDS for its handling of a flooding incident (NET NEWS 6/22) at the B-93 Birthday Bash has been denied, reports WZZM TV-13/GRAND RAPIDS.

Rain storms caused the GRAND RIVER to rise over its banks at the IONIA COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS that weekend, trapping 14,000 cars -- a large percentage of which were destroyed.

TUESDAY, attorney JOHN TALLMAN argued that the cases of hundreds affected by the flooding should all fall under one class action lawsuit instead of being handled on an individual basis.

The IONIA COUNTY judge overseeing the hearing denied that motion.

TALLMAN argued that everyone was affected by the same circumstances and therefore should be held to the same standard, explaining several people were reportedly told to stay put while the waters were rising, even giving the judge a transcript of an announcement made during the panic.

But attorneys representing WBCT made a successful case for Comparative Negligence -- saying that everyone has a different level of liability. The defense argued some people may have heard warnings and decided to stay anyway, and there wasn't enough evidence to suggest that damages should be consistent.

Lawsuits will persist but may now be splintered into hundreds of individual cases.

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