Colonial Inn Motor Lodge v. Gay
Author: Richard

Facts: D was backing car up on P’s parking lot when be bumped into a heating unit; resulted in a severed gas line; gas from the line collected and there was an explosion that caused  extensive damage and resulted in shutting the hotel down

History: T.C. gave summary judgment to D; P appealed

Issue: Whether there is enough evidence on the issue to remand for a jury to decide if the explosion was a probable consequence

Holding: Yes, summary judgment reversed, remanded for trial; FOR P

Rationale: A negligence defendant must take the plaintiff as he finds him, even if the plaintiff’s “eggshell skull” results in his suffering an injury that ordinarily would not be reasonably foreseeable.  Here the building may have had an “eggshell skull”; that possibility alone does not foreclose liability for the injury