FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM AUGUST 2, 2018 • THE QUEENS COURIER 85
STORM IN PROGRESS
Q: While walking in the parking lot of a store under construction, I
slipped and fell on frozen snow and ice. I was working as an electrician for a
subcontractor.
A: Under the ‘storm in progress’ rule, a property owner will not be held
responsible for accidents occurring as a result of the accumulation of snow
and ice on its premises until an adequate period of time has passed following
the cessation of the storm to allow the owner an opportunity to ameliorate the
hazards caused by the storm.
However, if a storm is ongoing, and the owner elects to remove snow,
it must do so with reasonable care. Otherwise, it can be held liable for
creating or exacerbating a natural hazard created by the storm.
Often, the attorneys will do research into the climatological data to
show how much precipitation there was in the relevant period, and when it
fell, and what the temperature was. This will help to determine whether the
property owner had a reasonable time to ameliorate the snow and ice condition.
Similarly, your attorney is likely to seek evidence that the owner
engaged in snow removal that actually exacerbated the condition – for
example, by piling snow against the side of the lot. The theory would be that,
afterwards, the snow melted and formed the ice patch on which you slipped.
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