(NationalUSNews.com) — On Jan. 6, 2022, Paul Kerouac stopped into the Winter Park, Florida, location of the popular donut and coffee franchise, Dunkin’. Although he did not know it at the time, they had been experiencing problems with a specific men’s room toilet. If he had known about it or if the management had taken steps to warn customers, he may not have been caught in the toilet explosion that left him and the restroom covered in refuse and debris that included human waste.
Kerouac filed a lawsuit against Dunkin’ on Wednesday, January 3, asking for more than $100,000 in damages. The suit claims that he suffered bodily injury and psychological damage from the incident. In addition to medical treatment in the aftermath, Kerouac has also been in counseling since then for the trauma that has left him with PTSD-like symptoms. The suit specifically mentions that, as a result of the incident, Kerouac has lost the capacity to enjoy life due to mental anguish directly related to the explosion at Dunkin’ that day.
After the explosion, Kerouac says that he asked the shop’s employees for help. He recalls that when he told them what happened, the employees told him they were aware of the problem with the toilet and that there had been other incidents. The lawsuit accuses Dunkin’ of failing to maintain the toilet properly and also of not warning customers of the issue, although they were aware of it, thereby creating a dangerous situation for customers such as Kerouac.
Kerouac’s lawyer, Scott Spradley, says that his client has suffered from mental and emotional side effects from that day. He added that while he hopes that Kerouac will receive just compensation, the imagery from the terrible incident will likely not be forgotten. Dunkin’ locations are franchises, so they are independently run under the parent corporation’s model. When contacted for comment, Dunkin’ said they do not comment on any litigation involving their individual franchises.
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