Pasco: Utility sued over wasp attack

Utility sued over wasp attack

The parents of a boy stung nearly 100 times allege Hudson Water Works could have prevented the attack.

By CARY DAVIS

The parents of a boy stung nearly 100 times allege Hudson Water Works could have prevented the attack.

The parents of a young boy who was stung nearly 100 times in August 1999 when he and a playmate disturbed a yellow jacket nest have filed a negligence lawsuit against a Hudson utility, saying it failed to take steps to prevent the incident.

John and Betty Nelson filed suit last week in Pasco Circuit Court on behalf of their son, Adam, who was 6 when his best friend stumbled on a large yellow jacket nest on property owned by Hudson Water Works.

The lawsuit alleges that the utility could have prevented the yellow jacket attack by building a fence to keep out children and better maintaining the dense undergrowth where the mammoth nest flourished.

Adam Nelson and his best friend, James Drake, who was 5 at the time, were chasing their older sisters in the woods behind the Anclote Villas apartment complex in Hudson when they came upon a nest that contained an estimated 30,000 yellow jackets. James tripped over a log and fell on the nest.

James was stung 271 times. Adam, who tried to swat the yellow jackets away from his friend, was stung 97 times. Both boys were airlifted to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg and transferred to All Children's Hospital, where they spent the night before they were released.

The boys' mothers said at the time that their sons had been told not to venture onto the utility's property.

Adam's parents are seeking in excess of $15,000 from Hudson Water Works for their son's pain and suffering, mental anguish and medical bills.

Representatives with Hudson Water Works did not return a call seeking comment. The Nelsons' attorney, Nicholas Athanason of St. Petersburg, also could not be reached.