FORT LAUDERDALE -- The feisty 84-year-old who survived three days in a swamp while awaiting rescue says she'll sue the people who failed to find her even after being told a car had been knocked over a city bridge.
Terry M. Rosenblum, Tillie Tooter's attorney, filed the requisite notice Thursday that she plans to sue the City of Fort Lauderdale and the Florida Highway Patrol for her delayed rescue.
"It's about Grandma Tillie and doing what's in her best interests to protect her legal rights."
Both the Fort Lauderdale Fire-Rescue Department and state troopers were near her car, checking the reported accident, but failed to find her beneath the Interstate 595 bridge after "nonexistent attempts to locate" her, Rosenblum said.
After receiving notice that someone intends to sue, state agencies have six months to review the matter.
Tooter had been heading to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in the early morning hours of Aug. 12 when her Toyota Tercel was rear-ended on Interstate 595. It plummeted into a swamp.
At least two people dialed 911 to report the crash.
But neither state troopers or rescue workers were able to find her after a brief search in the dark.
Three days later, she was spotted by a road worker.
Tooter survived by capturing rainwater and parsing out a stick of gum, a cough drop and a mint.
When finally rescued, she had no major injuries, but suffered from exposure and insect bites.
State law generally caps the total an agency can be required to pay at $100,000 per person.
A jury could decide to award more, but that would require approval of the Legislature.
