This case stems from the severe personal injuries of Katie Malone when she was parasailing from the private beach at the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa on June 9, 2018 and fell to the Earth from great height due to the Defendants’ collective negligence. Katie was a guest at the Marriot Resort. Upon arriving at the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, Defendant MARRIOTT made additional representations and enticements to encourage guests to make use of the resort’s beach facilities, including but not limited to activities such as parasailing. Defendant made direct representations to the Plaintiff concerning the available parasailing at the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, stating that it was safe.
On June 9, 2018, in the morning, the airport less than a mile north of the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa, Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport, grounded all flights in the area, and published a warning for any vessels in the nearby area to cease operations due to inclement weather. On that same day, Katie was laying on a beach-chair on Defendant MARRIOTT’s private beach when she was approached by Defendant MARRIOTT and/or its agent, and/or its representative, and/or its workmen to go parasailing off Defendant MARRIOTT’s private beach. Before participating in the parasailing activity, no instructions were given to Plaintiff regarding the parasailing operation by any of the Defendants. Katie requested information regarding the operation and safety of the parasailing activity, but she was told “there was nothing to worry about.”
Katie was strapped into the parasailing apparatus by Defendants SEA RIDERS and VALLARTA ADVENTURES while on Defendant MARRIOTT’s private beach. While parasailing, over 1400 feet in the air, the parasailing equipment malfunctioned and/or the rope connecting the parasailing to the tow vessel broke causing Katie to be flying freely in the air, in tremendous peril, for about 45 minutes, to then plummet to the ground at a nearby airport. As a result of the impact of the fall, Katie suffered severe permanent injuries to her head and body including numerous fractures which required surgical intervention and the placement of hardware. Frankly, Katie is lucky to have survived the ordeal.
