The mother of a then-2-year-old girl dragged by a river otter into the water at the Bremerton Marina last year sued the Port of Bremerton, accusing the agency of gross negligence that set the stage for the attack.
The dock at the marina was “otter-infested and foul,” according to an email from a tenant to the port managers in 2023. The email, which the Kitsap Sun had received shortly after the 2024 otter attack, was included in the mother’s complaint.
In September of last year, a river otter had dragged the 2-year-old into the water and scratched and bit her head, face and legs while she was walking down the dock with her mother. The mother grabbed her daughter out of the water after she resurfaced moments later.
The otter continued to chase the two as they attempted to flee, the mother said in the complaint. Both required rabies vaccinations afterward. The complaint did not say whether the mother was injured.
Travyn Schiffner, who lives on a sailboat in the marina with her daughter, said in the lawsuit filed in the Kitsap County Superior Court that the port failed its duty to maintain the safety of the marina by not taking care of an otter problem that residents had notified the government body of multiple times before.
“The Port was negligent in allowing dangerous conditions to exist on its property, including the presence of a territorial wild animal known to attack,” the complaint reads.
The lawsuit was first reported by the Kitsap Sun.
Former marina operations supervisor James Weaver in a 2023 email acknowledged “otters are a known problem and that he had “brought this up with the Port multiple times,” according to the complaint.
The same tenant who reported the marina was “otter-infested” also warned the Port that otters were dragging “fish guts and feces all over the docks,” creating a slip hazard and hygiene concern, according to the complaint.
Schiffner said there were “numerous incidents of otters attacking people before this incident” but she did not provide an example in the complaint. She also alleged that the port made no effort to warn the public of the otters, restrict access on the dock, or remove the otters.
In an email, Port of Bremerton CEO Jim Rothlin said the port could not comment on ongoing litigation, but that “the safety and well-being of our tenants, visitors, and broader waterfront community remain top priorities for the Port of Bremerton.”
Schiffner is seeking damages from the port for medical expenses, emotional distress, attorney’s fees and other costs but did not demand a specific amount, or specific actions from the port.
Officials last year had said there have been six incidents between humans and river otters in the state in the past decade.
River otters are relatively common throughout the state and can be found in fresh, brackish or saltwater habitats, officials said. They said encounters with river otters are rare.
Material from The Seattle Times archives were used in this report.
