Death on Hollywood Bridge: Operator Error? Or Pedestrian Blunder?

Flickr: sigfus_sigmundsson

​WSVN-7 has posted video of the 80-year-old man who perished last month while trying to walk across a drawbridge on Sheridan Street in Hollywood. Check it out and see whether you agree with the family of the victim and the family's attorney, who are suing the bridgetender.

It's a tragedy, of course. But it's perfectly obvious that the man ignored the warning of the bridge going up. Mind you, that's not a subtle warning. The bells go off; so do the lights, and the arm comes down on both sides. The final warning: when the ground beneath your feet begins to shake, then rise. That's a pretty straightforward clue that it's time to head back toward lower ground.

Granted, you hope that in the event a pedestrian ignores all those warnings, the bridgetender is kind enough to hold back traffic until a person crosses safely; but in my view, the responsibility is with the pedestrian not to place himself in such a precarious position.