MARATHONER'S FRACTURED LEG LEADS TO $490,000 SETTLEMENT

Armando Brionez lived to run. An Elite Master's runner, Armando trained 5 to 20 miles a day, 6 days a week, 11 months a year, averaging 75 miles a week. He ran the Boston Marathon in 3:03. His team, Club Northwest, won the National Master's 8 Kilometer Race. He was the 1996 Canadian/American Master's Cross-Country Champion. He finished third at the Stanford Master's Championships. He was the defending champion of the Nookchamps Half Marathon and finished 12th in the Las Vegas Master's Half Marathon. He handled the running leg for the team which won Oregon's Pole-Paddle Relay four times against Olympic-level competition. He was the defending Northwest Cross-Country Champion for his age group.

On August 13, 1997, Armando Brionez began a three-week vacation from his job as a millwright at the Intalco aluminum plant, where he had worked for 27 years. He planned to camp in the San Juan Islands, running each morning, kayaking in the midday, and then running again in the afternoon, in preparation for the upcoming racing season. He drove to the Anacortes Ferry Terminal, arriving at approximately 11:00 a.m. in his 1969 Bronco loaded with camping gear, with his kayak strapped on top. Since there was a two hour wait for the 2:00 p.m. ferry, Armando changed into running clothes (red shorts, a red bandana, and sunglasses) and began a five mile run to Anacortes and back along a marked biking/jogging trail adjoining the main road. It was 80°, sunny and clear. The two-lane road was straight and wide.

Todd Zentner, a 17-year-old employee of Statewide, Inc. apparently fell asleep at the wheel (at 12:30 in the afternoon!) and drove the right front wheel off the vehicle lane, over the biking/jogging lane, and into the gravel shoulder. He couldn't regain control of the Dodge B-250 Van at the posted 35 mph speed limit.

Armando heard tires squealing. He tried to jump behind a telephone pole but was struck from behind. He curled into a ball as he flew through the air "...as if he had been drop-kicked through a field goal." Everything went black. He saw a yellow light and thought, "I'm not ready!" When he opened his eyes, he was lying on his left side with bones sticking out of his left leg.

Armando was hit so hard that his body, probably his head, dented the front right hood of the big Dodge.

Several witnesses observed the collision.

Karleen Leighton described the Dodge van as ". . . driving erratically, swerving slightly from the vehicle lane to the bicycle lane, then to the gravel of the road shoulder. The van was kicking up a large amount of dust and gravel. . . "

Terry Hammond said, "I saw a man running westbound, well off the paved roadway, but directly in the path of this oncoming van. . . I was horrified to see the runner fly through the air, 15-20 feet, as if he'd been drop kicked through a field goal."

Armando was stabilized, given morphine for pain, and rushed to the Island Hospital in Anacortes.

Armando's injuries were divided roughly into two categories: (1) orthopedic injuries including left Grade I comminuted segmental open distal tibia/fibula fractures, associated ligamentous stretching and tearing injuries to the left leg, ankle and foot, and traumatic strain to the back musculature, and (2) post concussive head injuries including situational depression, memory dysfunction, olfactory disturbance, headaches and post traumatic stress symptoms.

The orthopedic care was taken over by Dr. Richard C. Williamson who was on call at Island Hospital on August 13, 1997. Dr. Williamson diagnosed a "Grade I comminuted segmental open distal tib/fib fracture". A comminuted fracture is a fracture where the bone is splintered or crushed. A segmental fracture is one in which the bone is broken into individual parts or segments. An open fracture is one where the bones have broken through the skin and are fully exposed. Distal means the fracture was on the portion of the tibia and fibula, the two bones of the lower leg, furthest away from the center of the body, that is, closer to the ankle. In sum, the two bones of Armando's lower left leg were crushed and splintered into multiple parts, some of which were sticking out through his skin.

The post concussive head injury was evaluated, documented and treated by Ted Judd Ph.D., a board certified neuropsychologist in Bellingham.

Armando's courage and attitude, born of long distance running, served him well in his uphill recovery, and also so impressed the insurance representatives that the had little question about the reality of the impact of the orthopedic and concussive injuries. An early meeting was arranged where an adjuster took Armando's statement in a large conference room. The conference room table was crowded with running trophies and awards.

Although Armando was initially unable to return to competitive running, during the period of his recuperation he served as President of the Greater Bellingham Running Club as a way to stay in running, to practice his organizational skills and to avoid depression caused by withdrawal from his core activity.

Armando also volunteered to coach a group of novice runners who ran in the San Diego Marathon and the Hawaii Marathon as a way to raise money for the Leukemia Society of America. An article and photograph in the Bellingham Herald depicted Armando with his team members.

To long-time marathoner Armando Brionez, running was a piece of cake. However, fund-raising was another matter.

Still, the 48-year-old President of the Bellingham Running Club was inspired by a good cause - raising money for the Leukemia Society of America through San Diego's Rock 'N Roll Marathon this Sunday.

It's very touching because. . . "you think you have problems and then you run into patients, and it's like your life is a cakewalk compared to theirs," Brionez says.

Last year he coached a "Team in Training (TNT)," a team that trained and raised funds from January to June. The participants all completed the 26.2 mile race. Brionez hoped to run in the annual winter fund-raising event, the Honolulu Marathon, until a mishap occurred.

"I was scheduled to do the Honolulu Marathon last December, but then I got hit by a van," Brionez laughs, but later his expression turns serious as he describes recovering from a concussion and severely fractured leg. "It's been a tough ten months."

Still, he returned in January to coach this year's TNT.

"I showed up at the meeting on crutches, and they're looking at this guy on crutches thinking, 'He's going to get me through a marathon?' Brionez recalls.

Ultimately, character and grit allowed Armando to resume his marathon career, although he will probably never again compete at the top of the Masters level.

The case was resolved by a structured settlement with a present cash value of over $490,000. Armando Brionez was represented by WSTLA Eagle Member Dean Brett of Bellingham's Brett & Coats.

For more information on serious personal injury claims, please see our Personal Injury page.