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Thursday, April 25, 2024 | Back issues
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Broken Back After ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

QUEENS, N.Y. (CN) - In what might be the first lawsuit over the "ALS ice-bucket challenge" that swarmed social media last year, a woman claims that she broke her back, and that it's an ice-skating rink's fault.

The challenge involving people dumping buckets of icy water on themselves to support awareness of Lou Gehrig's disease went viral between July and August 2014.

It was at the height of the frenzy on Aug. 18 when Luna Siracusa went to City Ice Pavilion in Long Island City, Queens, to perform the challenge, according to the complaint filed on April 24 in Queens County Supreme Court.

Siracusa says she approached an unnamed man operating the Zamboni ice-resurfacing machine at the ice-skating rink at 7 p.m. to clue him in on her plan.

This man allegedly told Siracusa that Zambonis happen to be full of icy water, and he offered to do the honor of dumping said water on Siracusa, the complaint states.

Siracusa says the man positioned her in front of the Zamboni in the arena's garage area, and then let her rip.

While Siracusa was sitting in front of the machine, the worker "opened a front panel/compartment of said Zamboni ice-resurfacing machine and caused a large volume off ice and ice water to be forecefull projected upon the head and body of the plaintiff ... propelling her from her seated position onto the concrete surface of the garage area," the complaint states.

Siracusa says she fractured her spine and got a concussion.

Claiming that it was City Ice's negligence alone that caused her injuries and embarrassment, Siracusa wants a judge to award damanges.

She is represented by Paul Cutrone in Douglaston, N.Y.

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