A University of Cincinnati medical student remains in a coma after being critically injured during a Corryville condo balcony collapse last fall.
Derek Borsody, a first-year medical student at UC, remains unconscious, unresponsive and in intensive care months after a balcony fell about 20 feet from a Stetson Street condominium, hospitalizing 10 people, according to a recent lawsuit filed in Hamilton County Common Pleas.
The news comes a month after UC Medical Center had said the last remaining critically injured patient was released from the hospital. Around that time, Borsody was transferred to a different intensive care facility, according to his attorney Charlie M. Rittgers.
A UC Medical spokeswoman said that patient privacy policies and regulations prevent the hospital from disclosing details about patients transfers without their consent. She said they are only allowed to disclose a patient’s active status at the hospital.
Borsody’s lawsuit was filed Jan. 16 alongside a lawsuit from eight other medical students and college-aged people hurt in the collapse.
While the city’s investigation remains underway, together the lawsuits shed light on what happened when the balcony collapsed around 10 p.m. Oct. 17, including the extent of the injuries suffered by several friends celebrating after their first exams.
The lawsuits allege the condo’s homeowners’ association, property managers, property owners and contractors responsible for the balcony’s upkeep, failed to make the proper repairs prior to the collapse, according to court documents.
In November, UC medical student Andrew McGovern became the first of the ten to file suit.
Student in coma’s prognosis is ‘unknown,’ suit says
Borsody’s injuries are so severe that he has remained unconscious from the moments after the balcony collapse, according to the lawsuit.
His prognosis and the full extent of his injuries remain unknown. Borsody’s mother has assumed guardianship due to his incapacitated state, according to court documents.
Rittgers said that the balcony collapse was preventable.
“Even though I am a parent myself, I cannot imagine the pain Derek’s parents have been forced to endure over the past several months,” Rittgers said. “Derek and his family’s life has been changed forever.”
The other nine people injured, including seven first-year medical students, have been discharged from the hospital and are in different stages of recovery, attorney Austin LiPuma of Freking Myers & Reul told The Enquirer.
The lawsuit describes the severity of their injuries, ranging from a student’s bone sticking out of his leg to profuse bleeding from a head wound.
In the aftermath of the collapse, other medical students who were at the apartment helped to stabilize one woman’s head and neck until paramedics arrived.
Unable to look around, the lawsuit says the woman recalls pleading with first responders to tell her whether her friends were alive. She continues to suffer from serious nerve damage along the left side of her body and face.
Another man who broke his heel, fibula and suffered severe face trauma remembers feeling a creeping chill come over his body as he realized he was going into shock, the lawsuit says.
“Their lives are forever changed in every facet. People, including our local students, should be safe and secure in their respective homes,” LiPuma said in a statement. “It is difficult to overstate just how much of an impact this negligent collapse has had on these future doctors, and the greater community as a result.”
City waiting for report from structural engineer
Cincinnati building inspectors are continuing their investigation into the collapse. Following the incident, city officials said other balconies in the complex that were built the same way would be closed until further notice.
In a statement to The Enquirer on Jan. 13, city spokesman Ben Breuninger said a report and recommendations from a structural engineer are not yet complete.
“After the balcony collapse, [Cincinnati’s Department of Buildings and Inspections] directed the property owner to secure a structural engineer to determine the cause of the collapse and design sound repairs,” Breuninger said.
The owner of the condo, Hezekiel Eskender, told The Enquirer in October that the Dayton company which manages the complex did repairs on the balcony two years ago. He said he did not have information about the nature of the repairs.
Rittgers said they will be doing their own investigation with experts to learn more about what led up to the balcony collapse.
“I expect that this was a systematic failure and there are a number of people and entities at fault for this preventable sadness,” Rittgers said.
Enquirer reporter Gillian Stawiszynski contributed.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: UC student still in coma months after balcony collapse, suit reveals
Reporting by David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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