## Facts

- José Domingo Colmenares Vivas and his wife, Dilia Arreaza de Colmenares, were injured while using an escalator at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in Puerto Rico.
- While ascending, the escalator steps continued moving but the handrail stopped, causing Mrs. Colmenares to lose balance.
- Mr. Colmenares grabbed his wife to prevent her fall and then lost balance and tumbled down the escalator steps.
- Plaintiffs sued Sun Alliance Insurance Company in a direct action as the liability insurer for the Puerto Rico Ports Authority, the airport owner and operator.
- Sun Alliance filed a third-party action against Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which had contracted to inspect, maintain, repair, and keep the escalator and handrails in safe operating condition.
- Near trial, plaintiffs sought to amend to assert direct liability against Westinghouse; Westinghouse opposed and sought additional discovery if added as a defendant.
- After plaintiffs presented their evidence, the district court granted a directed verdict for defendants, finding no evidence of negligence and ruling res ipsa loquitur inapplicable.

## Issues

1. Whether res ipsa loquitur applies when an escalator handrail stops while the steps continue moving, permitting a jury to infer negligence without direct proof.
2. Whether the “exclusive control” requirement is satisfied where a public facility owner has contracted out escalator maintenance to a third party.
3. Whether plaintiffs’ conduct, including Mr. Colmenares’s attempt to steady his wife, constitutes voluntary contribution that defeats res ipsa loquitur.

## Decision

- The First Circuit reversed the directed verdict and remanded for further proceedings.
- The court held the evidence permitted application of res ipsa loquitur and therefore required submission of the case to the jury.
- The court concluded the Ports Authority’s responsibility for safe airport facilities was nondelegable and supported treating the instrumentality as within the defendant’s control for res ipsa purposes.
- The court found no evidence that plaintiffs’ voluntary actions caused the malfunction; Mr. Colmenares’s reaction was a foreseeable response to the handrail stopping.

## Legal Principles

- Under Puerto Rico law, res ipsa loquitur permits a negligence inference when: (1) the event ordinarily does not occur absent negligence, (2) it is caused by an instrumentality within the defendant’s exclusive control, and (3) it is not due to plaintiff’s voluntary action or contribution.
- A specific mechanical malfunction may satisfy the first element when it is not a common occurrence consistent with due care.
- “Exclusive control” is assessed functionally; a defendant may satisfy the requirement when it bears primary responsibility for safety, even if a contractor performs maintenance.
- A public entity’s duty to maintain premises and equipment in reasonably safe condition may be nondelegable; contracting for maintenance does not necessarily defeat a res ipsa inference against the entity (and, in a direct action, its insurer).
- Foreseeable, immediate reactions to danger triggered by an apparent mechanical failure do not automatically bar res ipsa loquitur as plaintiff contribution.

## Conclusion

The First Circuit held that an escalator handrail’s abrupt stoppage while the escalator continues moving can support a res ipsa loquitur inference of negligence, and that a public facility operator cannot avoid jury consideration by pointing to a maintenance contract where it retains a nondelegable duty to keep the equipment safe.


Colmenares Vivas v. Sun All. Ins. Co., 807 F.2d 1102 (1st Cir. 1986)