Tamra Ordered to Pay 2 Million Shekels Over Path Accident That Blinded Child
The Haifa District Court ordered Tamra municipality to pay over 2 million shekels to a man who lost his eye at age 10 after tripping on a hazardous path. The court ruled the municipality negligent while attributing 15% contributory negligence to the plaintiff.
The Haifa District Court has ordered the municipality of Tamra to pay over two million shekels in compensation and legal costs to a young man who lost his right eye at the age of ten after tripping on an unpaved and hazard-ridden path. Judge Ibrahim Boulos ruled that the local authority acted negligently by failing to address numerous safety hazards at the site.
The incident occurred in October 2020 when the child left his home to visit a neighborhood grocery store. On his way back, he stumbled over rocks and stones scattered along a path near his home, fell forward, and sustained a severe injury to his right eye from a cut tree branch left at the scene. His grandfather and aunt, who heard his cries, rushed him for medical treatment, and he was subsequently transferred to Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa for emergency surgery.
Over the following years, the boy underwent additional surgical procedures, but his condition deteriorated until late 2023, when it was determined that he had completely lost the vision in the affected eye, and doctors recommended a prosthetic eye or a specialized contact lens. In a lawsuit filed through his parents, he argued that the municipality was liable for the accident due to the dangerous condition of the path, which was filled with potholes, debris, and rocks.
The municipality denied liability, arguing that the circumstances of the accident were not proven and pointing out that the plaintiff specified stumbling over a stone only at a later stage of the proceedings. Alternatively, the municipality requested that significant contributory negligence be attributed to the plaintiff and sought to hold his parents liable, filing a third-party claim against them for alleged lack of supervision.
Judge Boulos accepted the youth's version of events, which was supported by testimonies from his grandfather and aunt as well as medical records, noting that a ten-year-old child who suffered severe trauma cannot be expected to describe an accident with the precision of an adult. Based on photographs of the path, the court concluded it was a dangerous passageway riddled with hazards and unfit even for careful walking. The judge emphasized that the municipality knew or should have known about the danger yet failed to take simple precautions, such as fencing off the area.
The court determined that the boy bore 15% contributory negligence for not exercising greater caution on a path he knew well. However, the municipality's claim against the parents was dismissed, with the court ruling that parents cannot be expected to escort their child on every short trip near home. Taking into account a 38.5% medical disability rating and future loss of earning capacity, the municipality was ordered to pay approximately 1.7 million shekels after deducting the contributory negligence, along with legal fees of roughly 403,000 shekels and 15,000 shekels in court expenses.
