Lawsuit filed over Alabama dock fire that killed 8 in 2020

Staff photo by Ben Benton / A Scottsboro, Ala., police officer walks through the morning fog Tuesday at the Jackson County Park marina where eight people lost their lives in a tragic fire that started early Monday and destroyed 35 boats and extensively damaged structures. One resident whose boat survived the fire can be seen to the left. Staff photo by Ben Benton / A Scottsboro, Ala., police officer walks through the morning fog Tuesday at the Jackson County Park marina where eight people lost their lives in a tragic fire that started early Monday and destroyed 35 boats and extensively damaged structures. One resident whose boat survived the fire can be seen to the left.

By Associated Press May 28, 2021 2 min read

SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (AP) – A lawsuit filed over a dock fire that killed eight people at a county marina in north Alabama last year contends officials failed to ensure the safety of the structure.

The wrongful death suit names Jackson County commissioners at the time of the blaze; the city of Scottsboro; insurers and others. Fire, electrical and safety codes weren’t followed at Jackson County Park, where the marina was located on a wide creek off the Tennessee River, it claims.

Combustible materials on the dock increased the danger, the suit contends, and officials failed to perform annual inspections, fire response training, fire drills or develop a plan for dealing with a blaze.

The suit was filed Tuesday by the families of two of the fire victims, Amanda Nicole Foster and Yancy Tyler Roper, al.com reported. It seeks an unspecified amount of money to both compensate estates of the dead and punish the plaintiffs.

None of the defendants has filed a response to the lawsuit, court records showed Friday.