OPINION ISSUED JULY 10, 1987

W. MARSHALL PETTY AND PATRICIA A. PETTY
VS.
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS

(CC-86-393)

Claimant W. Marshall Petty appeared in person.
Nancy J. Aliff, Attorney at Law, for respondent.

PER CURIAM:

Claimants seek an award of $300.00 for damage to the lawn of their
residence by
respondent's heavy snow removal equipment on February 7, 1985.
Claimants' residence is
located at the end of a street in the Dunbar area of Union District in
Kanawha County, the street
being a part of the State highway system.

Upon his arrival at his residence from work on the day in question,
claimant W. Marshall Petty
had observed that the street, ending at his residence had been plowed by
snow removal
equipment and had also observed large tire tracks in the snow on the
lawn of his residence.
Later, when the snow had melted, deep tire track damage to the lawn was
apparent as shown in
photographs placed in evidence. The claimants had paid $300.00 to a
landscaping firm for its
repair and restoration of the damaged area.

Paul Little, who was foreman of respondent's North Charleston facility,
testified that records
showed that snow removal equipment was operating in the area of
claimants' residence on the
stated day.
There was no witness to the actual plowing of the street. The tire
tracks portrayed in the
photographs were obviously those of heavy equipment and not those of a
truck or passenger
vehicle. The Court concludes that the respondent's snow removal
equipment did the damage to
the claimants' lawn and makes an award in the amount of $300.00.

Award of $300.00.