Collapsed Dallas Cowboys Training Facility Is The Fourth Summit Structures Building To Collapse Since 2002

This past Saturday, the Dallas Cowboys' practice facility collapsed causing one man to be paralyzed and others to receive serious injuries.  The builder of the practice facility, Summit Structures, has had three other buildings collapse since 2002 in heavy weather. 

The first collapsed building was owned by a rancher and collapsed in 2002.  A lawsuit was filed and alleged that the building collapsed under the weight of snow that was allegedly substantially less than the capacity to which the building was built.  This case was settled for an undisclosed amount. 

The second collapsed building was owned by the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority and collapsed in 2003.  A lawsuit was filed over the collapse and a jury awarded more than $3,400,000.00 to the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority.  The judge found that the building collapsed due to the failure of the design to account for snow buildup on the roof.

The third collapse occurred in 2007.  A lawsuit has been filed by the building owner's insurance carrier, Hanover Insurance Co.  This lawsuit is still ongoing. 

The collapse of the Dallas Cowboys' practice facility brings the total to four known building collapses of Summit Structures.