Another person sues Westmoreland County, claiming injuries from Giant Slide in Mammoth Park

A woman claims she broke her nose and multiple ribs as well as suffered a concussion along with multiple abrasions and bruises more than a year ago when she became airborne and wiped out after hurtling down a metal racing slide in Mammoth Park.

Michelle D. Lynch, who only lists her address as Allegheny County, also claims in a five-page civil lawsuit filed in Westmoreland County that she continues “to endure great pain, suffering inconvenience, embarrassment and mental anguish.” She said she still is recovering from injuries she said she suffered in 2020 on one of the 100-foot-long slides in the Mt. Pleasant Township park’s Giant Slide Complex.

Lynch seeks unspecified damages.

County solicitor Melissa Guiddy on Tuesday declined to comment, saying the county does not comment on pending litigation.

According to the lawsuit, Lynch was going so fast down the slide as she approached the bottom that she lifted into the air, twisted sideways and struck the metal sides of the slide before hitting the ground and skidding several feet face-first onto concrete.

She claims she missed work, spent “large sums of money” for medical treatment and continues to receive treatment for her injuries and likely will be required to have “at least one, and possibly numerous surgeries” as she recuperates.

Lynch’s lawsuit is the second seeking damages against the county and its parks and recreation department.

In August, Melissa A. Cooley of Allegheny County sued, seeking more than $30,000 in damages for injuries she claims she suffered going down one of the slides.

Both women said they were hurt while riding the slide on Aug. 1, 2020.

Both lawsuits were filed by attorney Richard G. Talarico of Pittsburgh, who didn’t return calls seeking comment Tuesday.

The slides lacked signage about proper usage and lacked netting, guiderails, barriers and/or other protective safety equipment, Lynch’s lawsuit states.

The lawsuit contends the slides weren’t safe when they opened in 2020.

Talarico previously told the Tribune-Review that he had a video of Cooley’s crash. There was no mention in court papers whether Talarico has a video of Lynch’s crash.

On Sept. 3, Talarico told the Trib that in addition to recouping damages suffered by Cooley, her lawsuit was seeking “the elimination of existing problems so these types of injuries never occur there again.”

The slide has been a landmark in the park since 1973, when the original 96-foot single slide opened in the 408-acre park.

The Giant Slide was redesigned and reconstructed as part of $1.1 million in park renovations. It reopened July 2, 2020. The facility includes two 100-foot stainless steel racing slides, a smaller 50-foot plastic slide, climbing walls, walkways and landscaping.

In August 2020, the county temporarily closed the slides after reports that some people were getting injured. The slides reopened June 15 after safety inspectors deemed them safe.

County officials claimed some of those reporting injuries did not follow posted rules at the site.

Wax paper and other speed enhancements, including pans, are banned under safety regulations instituted after the moratorium.