NEW YORK — A man who says he broke his ankle jumping into the spray at the Museum of Ice Cream in New York City is suing, claiming the facility was negligent by failing to warn visitors that jumping into the spray is dangerous.
Plaintiff Jeremy Shorr alleges in his lawsuit filed Wednesday in Manhattan federal court that he visited the museum in SoHo with his daughter on March 31, 2023, and suffered “serious and permanent personal injuries” when he jumped into the litter pool, a ball pit-like installation filled with oversized plastic litter.
Shorr says in the lawsuit that the Museum of Ice Cream, which has four locations in the U.S., encourages visitors to jump in the sprinkle pool through its advertising and promotional materials, creating “the reasonable – but false – expectation that the Sprinkle Pool is appropriate and safe for that activity.”
A spokesperson for the museum declined to comment on the lawsuit.
In his lawsuit, Shorr cites a 2019 post on the museum’s Instagram account showing the spray pool and asking potential customers if they were “ready to jump in.”
The website of the museum, which features ice cream-themed installations and unlimited ice cream, encourages visitors to “dive into fun with our iconic spray pool!” It shows photos of children and adults playing in the pool, which appears to reach almost to their ankles.
Shorr says his encounter with the spray left him with injuries that required surgery and may require future surgeries, as well as physical therapy and diagnostic tests. He is seeking unspecified damages to cover his medical and legal expenses.
