Skanska tells jury weather destroyed Pensacola oyster farm, not a loose barge
A jury will determine if one of the construction company's barges destroyed the oyster farm in the wake of Hurricane Sally.
Sole owner and operator of the oyster company, Travis Gill, alleges that two of the 22 Skanska barges broken loose by Sally in September 2020 completely destroyed all 700,000 of the oysters he planted in Pensacola Bay in 2018, along with his oyster equipment.
"Years of time, money and effort to get his business off the ground lost because of the decisions and failures of Skanska," Brian Barr, one of Gill's attorneys, told the jury. "That's what we're going to prove during this trial."
During his opening, Barr told the jury that barges M 8026 and U 1506 destroyed the crop of oysters and all of Gill's equipment, dragging the oyster cages up the shoreline during the hurricane.
Skanska found negligent: Skanska loses Hurricane Sally trial. Judge finds company negligent for failing to prepare.
After beginning his company toward the end of 2017, Gill planted his first string of oysters in July 2018. Barr said that it takes roughly 24 months for oyster seeds to grow into marketable oysters.
Gill had roughly 700,000 oysters planted on his farm, and after taking into account that 15% of the oysters wouldn't survive until harvest, Gill had around 590,000 oysters he could sell for 60 cents per oyster, according to Barr.
"The evidence is going to show that the DeLuna farm was hit and damaged by Skanska's barges," Barr told the jury. "Skanska's negligence caused those barges to break free and send two of them on a collision course to (the oyster farm)."
Gill's attorneys also have photos and video taken by witnesses that show Skanska's barges in the vicinity of DeLuna Oyster Farm. They also have an expert witness, Double D Oyster owner Doug Ankerson.
Barr said Ankerson will testify that he has never seen weather cause the type of damage that Gill's farm suffered, saying the damage looks as though the farm was hit by a large object.
Gill claims Skanska at fault: Pensacola oyster farmer says Skanska barge smashed through farm, ruined 800,000 oysters
What is Skanska's response to DeLuna Oyster Company's lawsuit?
One of Skanska's attorneys, Derrick Walker, told the jury that the evidence does not support a barge hitting Gill's oyster farm. Rather, Skanska is claiming the force of Hurricane Sally and the resulting wind, waves and high surf dislodged the oyster cages and caused the damage.
"What did you hear? (Barr) was very careful. You heard 'going through, going over, being close, a collision course, near, in the vicinity of,'" Walker told the jury after Barr finished his opening statement. "None of those meet the burden of proof that the farm got hit by a barge."
Walker said the witnesses who took photos and videos of the barge will testify that they didn't see either of the barges impact the oyster farm during the hurricane.
Claudio Crivici, Skanska's key witness, is the president of Castle Rock Risk Services based in Vermont and specializes in marine surveying, casualty investigations and accident reconstruction. As an expert witness, Walker says Crivici will testify that his findings show a barge did not cause DeLuna's destruction.
During Barr's opening statement, he noted that Crivici was billing Skanska $450 per hour to oversee the salvaging of Skanska's barges.
Walker also reminded the jury that DeLuna Oyster Farm has the burden of proof as the plaintiff in the case.
Skanska's negligence
While Gill's case involves negligence on Skanska's part, DeLuna Oyster Company does not need to prove negligence since a previous federal court determined the company was negligent when it failed to move 55 barges before Hurricane Sally.
Under Skanska’s hurricane plan submitted to the Florida Department of Transportation, the company should have relocated the barges to one of two “safe harbors” — Butcherpen Cove on the Gulf Breeze shoreline on the east side of the Bay Bridge, or Bayou Chico in Pensacola on the west side of the bridge site.
Instead of following that plan, crews tied the barges to mooring pilings a few hundred yards east of the bridge. Of the 55 barges on site prior to the hurricane, 22 broke loose, crashing into seawalls, landing within inches of homes and taking out a significant portion of the Pensacola Bay Bridge.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Skanska USA v. DeLuna Oyster Company begins in Pensacola
