Two lawsuits allege faulty Firestone tires caused deaths

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Two families have sued Ford Motor Co. and Firestone, alleging tread on Firestone tires on their Ford Explorers separated and caused fatal accidents.

The lawsuits filed Monday follow the deaths in Florida of 10-year-old Athena Lingenfelser in November and the Rev. William Touchton in July, and accuse the tiremaker and the auto company of negligence.

Dozens of similar accidents have prompted federal traffic safety investigators to open an investigation into possible defects with the Firestone ATX, ATX II and Wilderness tires.

Attorney Gary Pajcic, who represents the girl's parents and Touchton's widow, all of Jacksonville, said the problem becomes deadly on the Explorer because its high center of gravity makes it more difficult to control when the tread separates.

''If you're driving a regular sedan, I don't think you have to worry because you don't have the stabilization problems,'' he said.

Ford did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Firestone said in a statement Tuesday that it has ''full confidence'' in the tires, almost 48 million of which have been manufactured.

Suits over the tires have been filed as far back as 1996.

In May, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration opened its investigation after receiving 90 complaints from consumers who experienced tread separation or blowouts.

Most involved tread separation at highway speeds and came from states in the Southeast and Southwest.

The federal agency has documented four fatalities, but the Public Citizen watchdog group in Washington and attorneys involved in litigation with Firestone and Ford allege 30 deaths nationwide have been caused by the tire separation problem.

The federal investigation is in its preliminary stages with letters sent to Firestone and Ford. Both companies have asked for additional time to respond.