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PDX Country Inn hotel shuttle driver loses leg after Sheraton Airport shuttle pins him

A lawsuit filed Wednesday, October 1 in Multnomah County Circuit Court seeks $10.5 million in damages from the owners of the Sheraton Portland Airport. Kevin Schaffer, 51, had his left leg amputated above the knee following an accident at Portland International Airport Oregon. Shaffer was a hotel shuttle bus driver for the Country Inn & Suites Portland Airport.

PDX Country Inn hotel shuttle driver loses leg after Sheraton Airport shuttle pins him

The lawsuit states that on September 12, 2014, Mr. Schaffer was at the curb of PDX loading passenger bags into the back of the hotel shuttle bus when Jeffery Matson, 52, who was driving the Sheraton Portland Airport Hotel pulled up behind him at 9:20pm. The suit alleges Matson did not place the shuttle bus in park before he exited the vehicle. As the Sheraton shuttle bus moved forward, Matson jumped in the bus and inadvertently stepped on the gas pedal propelling the bus into Kevin Schaffer and pinned him against the Country Inn & Suites shuttle bus.

“As the Sheraton bus began to roll forward, defendant Matson jumped back into the Sheraton bus and accidentally pressed on the gas pedal, propelling the Sheraton bus forward into the Country Inn bus, crushing plaintiff’s legs and pinning him between the two shuttle buses, causing plaintiff catastrophic, life-altering and permanent injuries,”

Oregon Live

According to the article in Oregon Live, Schaffer’s injuries included about 20 fractures in his left leg and ten fractures in his right leg. Surgeons amputated his left leg above the knee. Schaffer is still in the hospital with his medical bills already exceeding $500,000. Schaffer is expected to undergo more surgeries to reconstruct his right leg.

Man pinned between buses in serious condition after PDX airport crash (Sep 13, 2014)

Man hit by shuttle bus at PDX files $10 million lawsuit against hotel (Oct 1, 2014)

This KPTV Fox News affiliate story shared a link to a fundraiser for Kevin Schafer to help with medical bills.

Kevin Schaffer fundraiser

https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/1ws5/kevin-s-road-to-recovery

Looks like relying on the kindness of strangers is not necessarily a reliable way to pay the bills.

And I won’t even get started on my past experiences with insurance companies. My wife and I learned the hard way the challenges of getting any reasonable compensation when you really need it after an accident or illness.

*****

Ric Garrido of Monterey, California is writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler.

Loyalty Traveler shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. Check out current hotel loyalty program offers across all the major chains in Loyalty Traveler’s monthly hotel promotions guide.

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1 Comment

  • Ric Garrido October 6, 2014

    @anon – hotel airport shuttles are a big part of my travel life.

    This was in response to a question as to why I wrote this post when it is non-travel related. I deleted the original comment and several other comments from this date from any commenter I did not know since I suspected one of the comments contained a malware link.

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