Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
$100 Million Lawsuit After Shower Scalding
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Mar 22, 2008
Modified Mar 22, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Mar 22, 2008
Modified Mar 22, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
A Katrina refugee who resettled in Texas following the flooding of New Orleans is suing a Manhattan hotel for $100 million, after she was nearly burnt to death in her room's shower. Ethel Tropez, a 79-year-old woman who had to resettle in Live Oak, TX after Katrina, was visiting NYC and staying at the Hotel Chandler on 31st St., near 5th Ave.
She claims that while visiting the Manhattan with her daughter, she turned on the water in her room's shower and was blasted by excruciatingly hot water and fainted. By the time her daughter returned, Tropez had been subjected to the scalding spray for 30 minutes.
The extent of her burns required prolonged hospital stays and multiple skin grafts to repair the third degree burns that Tropez suffered in the shower stall. Her daughter says that her mother still has difficulty walking and continues to seek medical treatment back in Texas.
A sharp-eyed commenter at Daily Intel notes that the General Manager of the Hotel Chandler is Simon van Kempen, the husband of one of the Real Housewives of New York City, Alex McCord.
Tagged
Alex McCord
burned
hotel chandler
manhattan
scalded
shower
simon van kempen
skin grafts
third degree
Dave Hogarty
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot and killed on Midtown subway platform Saturday afternoon, NYPD says
Police said they're searching for a person of interest.
By
Ryan Kost
and
Elizabeth Kim
Published Oct 17, 2026
Modified Oct 17, 2026 at 4:10 p.m. ET
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
Being reigning champions is weird for Knicks fans, but we could get used to this.
By
Catalina Gonella
Tompkins Square Park is getting a makeover. Some say it's too much.
By
Willow Higgins
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
By
Rosemary Misdary
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .