A US family is claiming more than USD 80,000 from NASA after a small piece of debris fell from space and smashed through the roof of their home in the US state of Florida, as reported by the news agency AFP.
The problem of space trash has risen in tandem with increased spatial traffic, and NASA's response could set a precedent for how future claims are handled, law firm Cranfill Sumner said in a statement reported by AFP.
According to the report, on March 8, the object weighing just 700 grams hit Alejandro Otero's home in Florida's Naples and makes a big hole in the roof of the house.
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NASA later stated that it was part of a cargo pallet of used batteries that was released from the International Space Station (ISS) as waste in 2021. Instead of fully disintegrating before falling to Earth, the US space agency said, a section remained intact when it reentered the atmosphere.
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When the incident occurred, Otero's son was at the house, according to the law firm, which said that NASA has six months to respond to its claim. "My clients are seeking adequate compensation to account for the stress and impact that this event had on their lives," said lawyer Mica Nguyen Worthy.
"They are grateful that no one sustained physical injuries from this incident, but a ‘near miss’ situation such as this could have been catastrophic. "There could have been serious injury or a fatality." NASA did not immediately respond to AFP's request for a comment.