‘Tasi Tour’s life-guarding duty only at designated swim zone’

Tasi Tours & Transportation Inc. has life-guarding responsibility for only one area of Managaha Island—the designated swim zone.

Tasi Tours, through counsel Rexford C. Kosack, said its concession agreement with the CNMI government sets the company’s limited rights on Managaha. Kosack said the agreement does not give Tasi Tours any management authority or control over the island.

“It does not give Tasi Tours life-guarding responsibility for the island’s beaches. Instead, it gives Tasi Tours life-guarding responsibility for only one area—the designated swim zone,” Kosack pointed out.

The lawyer explained Tasi Tours’ responsibility in the company’s motion to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Xiao Ting Wang, the father of a female Chinese tourist who drowned while snorkeling in waters off Managaha in 2012.

Wang, 65, as personal representative of his daughter, Dao Wang, is suing Tasi Tours & Transportation Inc. and Man Bao Corp., which owns Win Tour.

Xiao Wang, through counsel William M. Fitzgerald, asked the U.S. District Court for the NMI to hold the defendants liable to pay him unspecified damages.

Fitzgerald said Tasi Tours, which has had exclusive management and control of Managaha Island since 1989, provides life-guarding service to less than 1 percent of the breach area; failed to provide life-guarding services to the most popular and best area for snorkeling; failed to prepare and implement an effective action plan to deal with rescue and resuscitate drowning victims; and failed to use the Red Cross defibrillator and supplemental oxygen system.

According to Fitzgerald in the complaint, Win Tour failed to ascertain Dao’s ability to safely use a snorkel; failed to confirm that Dao was capable of snorkeling safely; and failed to instruct Dao in the proper use of a snorkel.

In a motion to dismiss filed on Thursday, Kosack addressed only the first type of claim—that Tasi Tours allegedly negligently failed to provide life-guarding services at a beach where Dao was snorkeling.

Kosack said that based on the concession agreement, Tasi Tours may not decide where to place its lifeguards. He said there can be no liability for Tasi Tours not assigning lifeguards to another beach when it has no duty to lifeguard that other beach.

Kosack said Tasi Tours performed its duty by placing a lifeguard at the designated swimming area.

In addition, Kosack asked the court to strike the allegations about Tasi Tours having the backing of JTB, the “largest travel agency in Japan and one of the largest travel agencies in the world.”

These allegations, he said, are immaterial and impertinent.

“They are prejudicial to Tasi Tours and they are likely to confuse a jury as to whether the issue is Tasi Tours’ conduct or its ability to pay a judgment,” Kosack said.

Fitzgerald stated in the complaint that in the early part of 2012, Dao, 33, and her friend decided to purchase a snorkeling tour to Managaha from Win Tour. The two women departed Saipan by boat on April 16, 2012, and arrived at Managaha.

Dao and three other Win customers went into the water at the place where they were told it was safe to snorkel.

While Dao was snorkeling, water entered her snorkel and flowed into her mouth.

Fitzgerald said the other three, after snorkeling for only five minutes, decided to return to shore and later saw Dao face down in the water, almost on the shore.

The group immediately turned Dao over and called for help.

Fitzgerald said lifeguards responded and performed CPR, but did not use a defibrillator or a supplemental oxygen delivery system, even though they were available.

After a period of time, a boat was brought in and Dao was taken to Smiling Cove dock where she was placed in an ambulance and brought to the Commonwealth Health Center.

Dao was pronounced dead at CHC at 2:56pm that same day.