Plaza Towers Families File Claims Seeking Monetary Damages

The anniversary of the Moore tornado was a time to reflect on the events one year ago, but that day also marked the deadline for victims' families to file claims for monetary damages.

Seven claims were filed; one from every family that lost a child in Plaza Towers Elementary. Many have described May 20 of last year an act of God, but the seven families who lost children that day say someone must be held accountable.

"I have more of a healthy respect for tornadoes. I took them for granted. I took the buildings we were in for granted and you can't do that. You can't be complacent," said Moore Mom, Danni Legg.

Weeks ago, Legg and the other six families shared their memories and concerns for school safety when it comes to shelters in schools.

"Let them lose a child in the way we've lost something like this and I guarantee they would look at it totally differently," said Mom, Mikki Davis.

But now the families of the seven children killed inside Plaza Towers elementary have now filed tort claims against the City of Moore and the Moore Public School District. The claims state the School district and the city brought about the wrongful death of each child.

The cause they day was "failure to implement and follow the established safety protocols and procedures for the safety and wellbeing of the students."

Most of the claims also show the families feel the three entities "failed to properly hire, retain and supervise qualified architects, engineers and contractors, as well as ensure the Plaza Towers addition was safely constructed."

The City and District now have 90 days to settle or decline the claims. If declined, lawsuits could follow. Each family is seeking the maximum tort claim limit, which could be a total claim of $1,000,000.

Our legal analyst, Irven Box, says the families have up to two years to file litigation against any specific engineer and construction firms.

In an exclusive statement to News 9 attorneys for some families, West and Associates, stated:

"We believe that the one year anniversary of their deaths is a time to honor the lives of these children. It is understandably a difficult time for their parents. Therefore we have no comment at this time."