LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A family has filed legal action against a Las Vegas-based tour company and its bus driver after a 66-year-old man died when a bus broke down on its way to the Grand Canyon in 2023.
The lawsuit, filed in the Eighth Judicial District Court of Nevada by Cynthia Volkar, Jessica Neidermeyer, Dan Neidermeyer, Zachary Neidermeyer, Logan Neidermeyer, and Lindsey Coltogirone, lists American Transportation Systems Inc., a foreign corporation doing business as American Transportation, which owned or operated the tour bus involved in the incident, as a defendant.
Additionally, Robert LaRoche, identified as the driver of the bus at the time of the breakdown; Kenneth Pontone, doing business as Canyon Tours; Sightseeing Tours Unlimited of Nevada LLC, a Nevada limited liability company doing business as Gray Line Las Vegas; and other unidentified individuals alleged to have been involved in the incident were listed.
According to legal documents, the lawsuit centers on the death of Jeffery Volkar, 66, while on vacation with his family in July 2023 in Las Vegas. He fell unconscious and died of hyperthermia after a bus breakdown, the legal documents said.
According to the documents, the bus broke down in the Arizona desert en route to the Grand Canyon. During that breakdown, Volkar and 38 passengers were stranded for three hours “in extreme desert heat, with no ventilation, no operable windows, and no timely relief.”
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed to respond adequately to calls for emergency assistance, failed to dispatch a replacement bus promptly, and did not instruct passengers to exit the bus into the open air. Additionally, it claims that the defendants “displayed indifference to repeated warnings, passenger pleas, and basic safety protocols for commercial desert tours.”
According to the lawsuit, the bus operators were aware of mechanical issues with the vehicle days before the incident but “failed to properly diagnose and/or repair the overheating condition” of the bus and “negligently returned the vehicle to service.” It also alleges that the defendants failed to inspect the bus.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit seek damages for funeral and medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and punitive damages for wrongful death.
Neither American Transportation Services nor Gray Line Las Vegas immediately responded to requests for comment regarding the litigation. Should either entity respond, it will be added to this piece.
According to Volkar’s obituary, he was a retired bricklayer and a member of the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 9 in Pennsylvania.
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