A widow with two children has filed a lawsuit against FedEx claiming it used faulty tires that resulted in the fiery crash that claimed her husband’s life.
Kelsie Platt, 28, of Baldwin County, Alabama, said she and her kids, eight and five, are haunted by the loss of Hamilton, 32, after his car slammed into a FedEx truck that blew a tire on the interstate on September 21.
The crash caused Hamilton’s vehicle to burst into flames, burning him alive, with the wreckage uploaded on social media for Platt to find as she grew worried when he was late coming home, WPMI reports.
‘One of [the comment] was like, ‘Yeah, someone’s definitely dead in that car. The smell was horrible driving by.’ It was hard to see that, but I still held out hope that he wasn’t in there,’ Platt said.
She has now filed a wrongful death suit against FedEx and Goodyear, the tire manufacturing company, claiming its tires were faulty as her lawyer said the delivery company was effectively playing ‘Russian roulette’ on the roadways.
It is the latest lawsuit against FedEx after the father of slain minor Athena Strand filed a million dollar suit against the company for contracting his daughter’s murderer.
Hamilton Platt (left) died when his car slammed into a FedEx truck that blew a tire on an Alabama interstate road. He left behind wife Kelsie (right) and their two kids
The crash resulted in Hamilton’s vehicle igniting, burning the father-of-two to death. Images of the fiery crash (above) were uploaded on social media for his wife to find
Kelsei has filed a wrongful death suit against FedEx, claiming it knowingly used faulty retread tires on the vehicle that resulted in Hamilton’s fiery death
The widow said her family is haunted by the crash and wants to hold FedEx and tire manufacturer Goodyear responsible
According to Platt’s lawsuit, Hamilton had survived the initial impact when his car hit the FedEx truck, meaning he was ‘aware of his impending death, and that he was burning alive.’
Attorney Ed Rowan claimed the incident was a direct result of faulty retread tires, tires which have been reprocessed to remove wear and tear.
Rowan told WPBN that the tires on the FedEx truck were bald, separating, and should have clearly been replaced with new ones.
‘It’s a hazard,’ he said. ‘It’s playing Russian roulette driving on the roadway with tires in this condition.
‘You would also hope that FedEx is inspecting their vehicles and their tires. I mean, inspecting the tires is one of the most important things you can do.’
Platt said she wanted the company to be held accountable, adding that her children are still shaken about not having their father around anymore.
‘My son isn’t doing that great,’ Platt told the local outlet. ‘He doesn’t understand heaven and that daddy is in heaven.
‘There for a little while, he was angry with the idea of Jesus and God that they were keeping him up there.’
FedEx said in a statement: ‘We continue to extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Mr. Platt. We have been fully cooperating with investigating authorities. We will defend the lawsuit.’
Kelsie said her children are still shaken by their father’s death, with her son telling her he was mad at ‘Jesus and God’ for keeping Hamiliton in heaven
Kelsie’s attorney, Ed Rowan, said the tires on the FedEx truck were bald, separating, and should have clearly been replaced
According to the lawsuit, Hamilton was still alive as his car ignited. Pictured: Hamilton and Kelsie on their wedding day
This is not the first time the delivery company has been accused of using faulty tires on its trucks.
In 2016, the company faced a federal lawsuit over a triple fatal collision in Wyoming, which was settled for $240 million.
FedEx is currently dealing with another lawsuit regarding the death of Athena Strand, seven, who was kidnapped and strangled to death by driver Tanner Horner.
Athena’s father, Jacob, also names the contractor hired by FedEx that employed Horner, Big Topspin.
One section of the lawsuit alleges that FedEx put ‘dangerous persons in a position of trust’ even though Horner wasn’t employed directly by the packaging giant.
Another section accuses FedEx of having ‘significant control’ of people who come to their customer’s homes.
Jacob Strand argues that neither FedEx nor Big Topspin ran a proper background check on the suspect. He has no known criminal history.
Big Topspin serves the area where Strand was last seen, the van driven by the suspect is owned by FedEx and the suspect was authorized to wear the company’s uniform, the lawsuit says.
A statement on Strand’s employment from FedEx read: ‘The employees of these service provider companies are subject to criminal history background checks as part of the driver eligibility process.’
The press release continued: ‘As is common across the industry and considered standard employment practice, the background check process is administered by a third party.’
