Florida family sued NASA for $80,000 after space debris hit their home

A Florida family sued NASA for a $80,000 claim after its metallic space debris came to Earth, tore through their Naples home, and left a hole in the roof. This lawsuit came after the March 2024 incident when space debris damaged their home.

This incident was a shockingly rare case of man-made debris from space falling back to Earth’s surface and crashing into a house in Naples, Florida. It also raised questions about who is responsible for damaging property on Earth owing to space debris.

*A fallen space object left a hole in the roof of a Naples home*

Following this, the affected family’s lawyer, Mica Nguyen Worthy, filed a lawsuit against NASA since part of its space flight equipment comprised of a huge metallic piece hit Naples home. The hit piece weighs 1.6 pounds and has dimensions 4 by 1.6 inches.

Mica claimed space debris was a genuine and severe problem due to the rise in space travel in recent years. Hence, the victim’s family demands sufficient compensation for damage to their home and this incident’s impact on their lives.

He revealed that Alejandro Otero, the 19-year-old son, was inside the home during this incident. However, he survived because he was a few rooms away from the space debris hit, fortunately.

So, the family expressed gratitude that no one suffered injury in this incident, but a “near miss” scenario like this one could have had disastrous consequences.

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Hence, lawyer Mica on behalf of the affected Florida family sued NASA. The family seeks damages for emotional and mental distress and non-insured property damage loss. On the other hand, NASA did not comment on this lawsuit.

Everyone was suspicious when space debris hit Alejandro’s home. However, NASA clarified in its statement that the hit space object was part of an International Space Station (ISS) operation in April 2024.

This space object was part of NASA’s mission. It was a broken part of a 5,800-pound cargo pallet released by ISS in March 2021. It aimed to orbit Earth for two to four years but caught fire in the atmosphere. Following that, a part of it broke and hit Florida home.