Eel bites 1-year-old at aquarium, leads to $1M lawsuit

Audio By Carbonatix

An area resident is suing an interactive aquarium after an eel allegedly bit a 1-year old child. 

Seeking more than $1 million in damages, Ronaldo Lewis, as next of friend to K.L., filed suit against the Houston Interactive Aquarium & Animal Preserve on Oct. 14 in Harris County District Court. 

According to the lawsuit, on Nov. 19, 2023, Tajinae Lewis took her 1-year-old son, K.L., to the interactive aquarium and walked up to the stingray reef exhibit, which also had eels in it. The exhibit permits customers to touch and feed the stingrays. 

“While K.L. had his hand in the water, his left hand was bitten by a green-yellowish eel,” the suit states. “The bite captured his palm, top hand, thumb, pointer finger, and the area in between. An employee in charge at the establishment told Mrs. Lewis that it must have been feeding time and grabbed her son by the left hand in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

“Another employee brought a first-aid kit, and called a third employee because they needed a ‘bigger’ first aid kit. Neither first aid kits were opened and the employees never called 9-1-1.” 

The suit goes on to allege the employees instead told Mrs. Lewis to call the police and an ambulance, which took a couple of minutes “due to her phone being covered in her son’s blood.” 

Mrs. Lewis ended up taking her son to the hospital herself, where a doctor stitched up his hand while he was awake because “they did not have any ketamine to place him under,” the suit states.

The plaintiff alleges the defendant failed to warn Mrs. Lewis of the dangerous condition and failed to make an effort to eliminate the dangerous condition.

The plaintiff is also alleging gross negligence in addition to premises liability and is seeking damages for K.L.’s pain, mental anguish, impairment, medical expenses and mental trauma. 

Mack Injury Attorneys in San Antonio represents the plaintiff.