Deepest condolences to al those affected by this tragic occurrence.
Is there any such thing as an accident ?
YES - Of course there is ! - It is the definition and interpretation of the meaning of the word that seems to cause the problem ...
What is an ACCIDENT?
Dictionary definitions go along the lines of, "An unexepected or onforeseen event, particularly when damage or harm are caused."
The word "accident" seems to have developed a common understanding that whatever the occurrence was, there was no-one to blame.
The majority ( some would argue all ) "accidents" could have been avoided in one way or another,
and would be called "preventable" accidents.
If you are going to analyse the whole series of events leading up to an "accident",
then it may be useful to refer to the occurrence as an "incident" rather than an "accident".
The word "incident" in popular use having no such blame free perception attached to it.
Interestingly the Police changed their description of a "Road Traffic
Accident" to a "Road Traffic
Collision" -
Presumably to remove the Defence arguement that "If it was an 'accident' then my client cannot be to blame."
So back to the original point - was the door opening an "accident" ?
Taking the dictionary definition of an "Unforeseen or unexpected event...." -
YES - It was an "accident", the person who fell out of the door was probably not expecting it,
the pilot wouldn't have been expecting it to happen etc. etc.
Was it a "preventable accident" ? - Almost guaranteed.
Was it an "incident" - Oh Yes.
