Myrtle Beach company faces another claim that beachgoer was hurt by rogue umbrella
A Myrtle Beach rental company is facing a second lawsuit this year after one of its umbrellas allegedly came loose and struck a person on the beach.
An Ohio woman claims she was struck in the head and seriously injured by a flying umbrella while visiting Myrtle Beach on June 13, 2023. The rented umbrella was placed on the beach by John’s Beach Service, now known as Myrtle Beach Surf Rescue.
The suit, filed by Michael and Patty Kinnan, names John’s Beach Service and East Coast Umbrella Inc., which manufactures the umbrellas.
A message left with John’s Beach Service was not returned. A phone number for East Coast Umbrella would not allow a message to be left.
Another rogue umbrella lawsuit earlier this year
Both companies also were named in a lawsuit earlier this year by an Indiana woman, who claims that an unanchored beach umbrella became dislodged and hit her while she was walking on the beach.
Kinnan said she was sitting on the beach next to her husband at 201 76th Avenue North in Myrtle Beach when an unanchored umbrella that had been placed in the area by a “dual role” lifeguard and beach attendant employed by John’s Beach Service struck her, the lawsuit said.
Prior to 2024, John’s Beach Service had a contract with the city of Myrtle Beach to not only rent umbrellas and beach chairs, but also provide lifeguard services for the city beaches. The beach attendants performed both roles.
Beach attendants also served as lifeguards
The rental company has been a part of ongoing lawsuits because of such injuries and its previous dual-role system.
The company faced a lawsuit after one of their umbrellas impaled and killed 63-year-old Tammy Perreault in August 2022, The Sun News previously reported. Her death resulted in the elimination of the dual-role lifeguarding system.
A lawsuit also was filed in August 2025 by a man who claimed he and his daughter almost drowned in August 2022 because of the dual lifeguard system. Lack’s Beach Service and John’s Beach Service were named in the suit.
Kinnan’s lawsuit claims that because of strong winds the day she was on the beach, company management had several hours earlier told the staff to lower all umbrellas for the remainder of the day, however, the instructions were not followed.
John’s Beach Service, umbrella company were negligent, lawsuit claims
The companies had a duty to protect those on the beach and the user of its products from physical harm, the suit said.
The lawsuit claims that both companies were negligent in making sure the umbrella lacked proper safeguards to keep it anchored in the sand and prevent the umbrella from becoming airborne.
John’s Beach Service also ignored several warnings about its dual-role lifeguarding being unsafe, including a 2016 letter from the United States Lifesaving Association and an amended contract in March 2023 with Horry County that banned lifeguards from engaging in “any commercial or retail activity,” the lawsuit said.
Horry County and city councils separated lifeguard duties from rental sales in 2023, and the new process went into effect in 2024.
Kinnan suffered severe bodily injuries, as well as medical bills and other damages, the suit filed Nov. 19, 2025, said. She is asking for a jury trial.
