HOUMA — The relatives of two dead oilfield workers filed suit against a helicopter transport company and two other businesses this month, blaming them for a nearly year-old crash that killed eight people.
Both suits allege a defective windshield caused the helicopter to crash in a remote Terrebonne Parish marsh Jan. 4. One also claims the aircraft struck a bird, contributing to the crash.
The helicopter's owner, Petroleum Helicopters Inc., which flies oilfield workers offshore, is named as a defendant along with the manufacturer of the aircraft, Sikorsky, and the maker of the windshield, Aeronautical Accessories.
The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the crash, said Ted Lopatkiewicz, a spokesman. A report on facts collected so far could be released this week, but pinpointing the crash's exact cause will take longer.
“There are times when the board lists the cause as undetermined,” Lopatkiewicz said in an e-mail Monday. “That happens rarely.”
The board's initial report says the twin-engine S-76C ++ helicopter left an Amelia airbase at about 2 p.m. and crashed about 7 minutes later. It made only 12 miles of a planned flight to a Gulf of Mexico platform owned by Shell Oil.
The two pilots and six workers on board were killed. A lone survivor was critically injured.
Attorneys representing relatives of Jorey Rivero, 35, a MMR Offshore Services worker from Bridge City, and Randy Tarpley, 53, a Dynamic Industries worker from Jonesville, filed the suits in Terrebonne district court last week. Both were onboard the aircraft and died.
Pamela Rivero filed a suit on behalf of her three children, Anna, Cheyenne and Jorey Rivero Jr. Court papers say they seek damages for a loss of “nurture, guidance, support, care and instruction,” among other claims.
The suit does not specify the plaintiffs' relationship to Jorey Rivero. Ronnie Penton, the Bogalusa attorney who represents Pamela Rivero, could not be reached Monday afternoon.
The suit cites a light-weight windshield made by Aeronautical Accessories as a factor in the crash, but does not specify how it played a role.
In February, federal investigators said microscopic hawk remains were found on the helicopter's windshield. They also said PHI had replaced the windshield twice, once due to cracking a year before the crash.
The court filing is the second by a relative of Rivero. His widow, Toni Rivero, filed a lawsuit Jan. 15.
Tarpley's three daughters, Stacie, Melinda and Hannah Tarpley, are also seeking damages. Their suit says the windshield was “unreasonably dangerous” in design and cites a bird-strike as a cause of the crash.
“It comes from several sources,” said John Charrier, the Baton Rouge attorney representing the daughters. “At least at this point we believe that was one of the causes.”
The daughters are in their 20s and one is serving military duty in Iraq, he said.
The suits are part of mounting civil litigation against PHI and other companies as a result of the crash. There have been at least seven suits filed including those submitted this month.
The wife of deceased worker Andrew Mauricio, of Morgan City, filed suit in May. His widow, Krystal Mauricio, seeks $13.5 million in damages, court papers say.
Her Houston attorney, Richard Mithoff, has cited evidence of a bird strike found by federal investigators and said a replacement windshield installed on the helicopter was more susceptible to impact.
He also claims the helicopter's speed is a factor.
The crash's only survivor, Stephen Yelton, of Floresville, Texas, filed suit in March seeking $22.5 million in damages from the companies mentioned.
Suits have also been filed by relatives of Charles Nelson of Pensacola, Fla., and Allen Boudreaux Jr. of Ama.
A message left with PHI was not returned Monday.
Houma attorney Bill Dodd, who represents the estranged wife of Boudreaux, said a federal judge is determining if local or federal courts have jurisdiction over the cases.
“We'll probably know more after the first of the year,” he said.
