KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa met the investigator for a local attorney representing a victim injured in the Family Dollar collapse in July. The two kept in touch to make this story possible. Share your story idea with Ryan.
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Tammy Martin would classify herself as a "busy body," working 12-hour days for a cleaning service.
She loves to ride her bike and spend time with her 13-year-old kitten, with a constant smile on her face.
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Little did she know, a "mini-vacation" in Kansas City's Midtown neighborhood would change her life.
"On Sunday, I was heading to get cat food to get ready for work on Monday, and I didn’t make it to work," she told KSHB 41 reporter Ryan Gamboa.
It was Sunday, July 27, 2025, when Martin chose to purchase her cat food at the nearby Family Dollar on Broadway.
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The last thing she remembers from that day is seeing a man on the phone in the entrance to the building, the entry doorbell ringing, then waking up in a hospital bed.
"That DING! When a person comes into a store or whatever, that’s the last thing I remember. I heard that for two days," she explained.
Tammy Martin was one of three people injured in a facade collapse at the Midtown Family Dollar, reported by the Kansas City, Missouri, Fire Department. One man, who investigators later identified as Larry Banks, died in the incident.
Waking up in the hospital, she wasn't sure what had happened until a nurse came into her room asking if "this was the woman from Family Dollar."
"Then it all hit. Like, wait a minute, I was at Family Dollar. Wait a minute, what happened?" she shared. "Then I looked over and said, don’t tell me nothing, turn off the TV, I don’t want to know nothing. I knew it was bad. That’s all I knew."
Martin says she didn't want to panic and know any more about what happened the afternoon of July 27.
"The less I knew, the better off I was. That's how I left it for a couple days," she added.
Martin says she was crushed by the building from the shoulders down. Her daughter claimed she was "flat at one point."
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Martin experienced severe injuries, including multiple fractures in her right arm, a fractured collar bone which needed internal hardware to repair through surgery, a completely crushed pelvis with a rod placed from hip-to-hip, and two amputated fingers.
As her medical journey began, she was later introduced to James Stigall, a Kansas City area attorney. The two met in the hospital, with Martin telling him, "I clean your toilets!"
Engaging in a laugh, Martin and Stigall connected. Tammy cleans offices in the lightwell KC building in downtown KCMO, including Stigall's office.
"What I got myself into was a friend. I mean, Tammy’s smile from day one puts you at ease," Stigall told Gamboa. "In a career when you deal with people who’ve gone through traumatic and catastrophic injuries, you’re finding people at their worst days and having a client who smiles when they’re in their worst days — it makes everything else you’re about to go through that much more tolerable."
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Stigall went to work, filing a civil suit for damages on Aug. 1 in Jackson County Circuit Court against three defendants: Family Dollar, Inc., Family Dollar Stores of Missouri, LLC, and the building owner, Arthur Fels Company.
The suit's core claims are that the defendants owned, controlled, and operated the building, including a duty to maintain, inspect, and repair the store, especially the facade.
The lawsuit also claims a support pillar was damaged in 2016 by a vehicle crash and was allegedly never repaired.
KSHB 41 has reported on images showing deteriorating conditions of the facade, which is claimed to have injured Martin. The warnings given by nearby residents and patrons are also named in the lawsuit.
Stigall claims that the defendants also had knowledge of the danger, and they did not close the store or warn customers, claiming premises liability and negligence.
"In this case, you have defendants who it appears were aware of the danger and chose to do nothing," Stigall said. "That’s the difference in this case."
Court filings in response to Stigall's initial petition deny negligence liability outright, with each defendant asserting they did nothing wrongful and did not cause the collapse or the plaintiff's harm.
KSHB 41 reached out to each company named as a defendant in the lawsuit for comment and is awaiting a response.
"They should’ve closed the store the first time they were told this was a danger. They should’ve closed the store every time someone came in and said this was going to collapse," Stigall explained. "Most certainly, the morning of July 27, 2025, when an individual went in there and said that this was going to fall, and an employee told that person, they heard it cracking. They should’ve closed the store. This was avoidable."
Martin has made great strides in the almost three months since the incident occurred. She's able to walk with some assistance.
At one point, doctors told Stigall that Martin may never walk again. She attributes her progress to a little bit of "stubbornness."
"They might have thought it, but it's determination. My brother said it even, 'they don’t know you.' I said no," she explained.
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Martin is seeking justice and accountability for what they claim is negligence. Stigall told KSHB 41 that their goal is a jury trial, which could be as early as 2026 or as late as 2027.
For now, Martin is keeping her positive attitude, hoping to defy the odds and get back to work and ride her bike one day.
This experience has given her a new perspective on life, grateful to be alive.
"Somehow I was spared, and I don’t ever question why, I don’t ever question the higher power," she added. "I want business owners to take accountability for the customers, not just the profits they’re making... look at us as people, not a dollar."
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