Reservoir Sues Parents Of Drowned Children For ‘Corpse Pollution’
Today in Sick, Sad World, some grieving parents in Yunnan, China, are being sued by the operator of a local reservoir who says their children polluted the water by drowning in it. That company really needs at least one public relations representative who could say, “You know, guys, this isn’t going to look very good.”
According to Shanghaiist, five school children drowned in the reservoir in a tragic accident recently. It was an unbelievable tragedy. Two of the five children were a pair of brothers, and the parents of those boys filed a lawsuit against the company operating the reservoir and the local water authority. The parents’ suit alleges that the companies failed to provide necessary protections to keep people, especially students from the nearby school, from swimming and drowning in the reservoir. According to the parents, there were no warning signs, no fences, and no employees who bothered to warn the children not to play in the reservoir.
According to CRI, the parents were asking for about $75,000 in compensation after the deaths of their two children.
The company has defended itself, saying that the parents were negligent, and if the parents had been taking proper care of their children none of this would have happened. OK, fair enough. That’s a harsh but reasonable way to respond to a lawsuit. But then the company doubled-down and is counter-suing the grieving parents to collect a “corpse pollution fee,” on the grounds that the children polluted the reservoir by drowning in it.
The company’s suit alleges that the company was forced to do extra treatment on the water to make sure it was clean–again, after five children drowned in it. The company says it sustained a financial loss from the extra water treatment, and is counter-suing the children’s parents to recoup the money. According to the counter-suit, the company is seeking about $1,400 from the children’s parents.
That’s so cruel. I could understand a company declaring its innocence or even saying that the deaths were the parents’ fault. But trying to charge a “corpse pollution fee” is just sick and heartless.
(Photo: iStockPhoto/Mingman Srilakorn)
