Following Google Maps’ directions, a man regrettably drove off a collapsed bridge suffering a deadly 20-foot fall. His family has responded by suing the tech behemoth, along with two other companies and a person, alleging negligence.
Philip Paxson, who was engaged in this unfortunate incident, was apparently using Google Maps to navigate his way through an unknown neighborhood. Paxson was reportedly driving during inclement weather on a dark and rainy evening. The bridge should have been apparent according to photos taken at the site.
The bridge lacked any barricades, warning signs, or other elements to warn cars of the risk, according to police who responded to the scene. Authorities claim that neither municipal nor state authorities were responsible for maintaining the bridge, and the company of the original developer had been liquidated long ago. Despite all of that, some may still blame Paxson for this, but there is still one more catch.
“There will be a lawsuit.”
Family of Hickory man who was killed after driving his Jeep into a creek has hired wrongful death attorneys.
They believe GPS led Philip Paxson over the “bridge to nowhere,” which washed away about 10 years ago. No barriers were in place either. pic.twitter.com/M2ps7WiOFH
— 𝕄𝕠𝕣𝕘𝕒𝕟 𝔽𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕖𝕤 (@MorganFrancesTV) October 13, 2022
Evidently, the bridge has been unusable ever since it collapsed approximately ten years ago. According to the lawsuit, Google Maps ignored several requests to remove it from its list of passable roads. Notably, the family also sued the bridge’s owners, James Tarlton, Tarde, LLC, and Hinckley Gauvain, LLC. Paxson’s widow, Alicia, said:
“Our girls ask how and why their daddy died, and I’m at a loss for words they can understand because, as an adult, I still can’t understand how those responsible for the GPS directions and the bridge could have acted with so little regard for human life.”
Responding to this, Google spokesperson José Castañeda told The Associated Press:
“We have the deepest sympathies for the Paxson family. Our goal is to provide accurate routing information in Maps and we are reviewing this lawsuit.”
If the family wins the lawsuit, it may have an impact on how Google and other navigation companies handle correction requests in the future.
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