BOISE, Idaho — An attorney for two of the three men killed when a hangar under construction at the Boise Airport collapsed last week, held a news conference on Friday. Enrique Serna of Serna & Associates PLLC, said it was a terrible tragedy that should not have happened.
Families for Mario Sontay Tzi, 32, and Mariano Coc Och, 24, hired the law firm that is based in Texas and Idaho. Both men are originally from Carcha, Guatemala.
"Nobody wanted this but someone, or something, went so terribly wrong that we are going to hold them accountable," Serna said.
He added that his firm plans to hold everyone responsible for the incident accountable and anyone who has information regarding the collapse should contact his office. He said he has not been in contact with Big D Builders, the company building the hangar.
During the news conference, Serna also showed short a video that had Coc Och's wife, mother and brother. Serna said the family was not familiar with the legal process in the United States and asked media wirth questions to refer them to his law firm.
Serna said his law firm is waiting for the death certificates to be released so that the bodies can be taken back to Guatemala and that he has been communicating with the local director of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
"Mario and Mariano's lives were good," Serna said. " They were very good at their trade, working in construction for 5 years and proudly supporting their families in Guatemala. Sending money back and living the American Dream."
Craig Durrant, 59, Mario Sontay Tzi, 32, and Mariano Coc Och, 24, died from blunt force trauma sustained when the hangar that was being constructed at the time, collapsed.
The lawyer said they plan to get information from all entities involved, including local, state and federal authorities.
"Idahoans deserve better, Mario and Mariano (Alex) deserved better, all of those who today are injured and recovering deserve better, and we believe in the justice system in Idaho," Serna said. "We will seek the maximum damages that a jury will award, will hold everyone that contributed to this horrific tragedy responsible, and justice will be served."
Additionally, the firm will seek to enter the site with their own experts and engineers to determine the cause of the structure collapse, according to the statement. Serna stated the firm will not provide nor discuss information regarding the case until after all necessary evidence has been collected and those who are responsible have been decided.
Serna added, "How can a company with such a published history of workplace violations (Big D) be allowed to work at the Boise Airport on a project of such magnitude? Who would want to engage in business practices with them?"
Hangar collapse incident
On Wednesday, Jan. 31, three men died when the airport hangar collapsed as construction workers were active on site. Nine other people were injured in the incident. The last update provided on those injured, was that five of the nine were in critical condition.
Members from Boise Fire Department, Boise Airport, Ada County Paramedics and Boise Police Department took turns addressing the public in a news conference Friday, recognizing the disaster and applauding the first responders.
Officials also briefly discussed the status of the collapse investigation - essentially stating that they could not discuss much, as the incident is actively being investigated by OSHA.
According to Idaho Secretary of State records, Big D Builders was the construction company building the hangar at the time of the collapse. The brother of Big D Builders' owner was among the dead.
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Inland Crane was hired to assist Big D Builders in the building construction. According to a statement from Jeremy Haener, Vice President of Inland Crane, a crane was working to place an end truss when the hangar collapsed "due to an unknown structural failure."
Haener said the crane boom snapped on impact. Inland Crane originally had four cranes at the location to build the hangar, but the steel erection contractor requested for three of the cranes to be removed with a majority of the work done by Wednesday afternoon.
"Justice will be served for the grieving families of Mario and Mariano (Alex)," said their legal representative.
KTVB will provide the latest information regarding this story and the ongoing OSHA investigation as information becomes available.
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