Less than a year after he dived into a make-shift swimming pool at a party and broke his neck, an Oregon State University student has sued a fraternity, the university and the city of Corvallis for negligence.

Kevin Manning, who was injured around midnight on May 21, is seeking nearly $50 million in damages, including current and future medical costs as well as lost future earnings. His lawsuit, which was filed in Benton County this month, alleges that the Sigma Chi fraternity on OSU created a dangerous situation when it built a swimming pool for an annual spring party known as “Embarcadero Days.”

Manning, who was 20 the night he was injured and now lives with his parents in Portland, is permanently paralyzed from the neck down, his attorneys said.

He had been drinking, the attorneys said, but “he was not drunk” when he dived into the pool.

The fraternity had built a sizable outdoor swimming pool with plywood and lined it with plastic, Manning’s attorneys said. A platform was situated in a tree that rose from the center of the pool, they said, and another platform abutted the pool’s periphery.

“It’s the damnedest Rube Goldberg device you’ve ever seen,” said Doug Schaeffer, whose firm, Spaulding Cox & Schaeffer, represents Manning.

The pool was built using 4-foot-high plywood, Schaeffer said, but it was unclear how deep the water was because the pool had been leaking throughout the day. Witnesses told police the water was less than 2 feet deep.

The lawsuit alleges that the Sigma Chi fraternity built the pool in violation of state codes, that it was not properly supervised and that the fraternity failed to warn partiers against diving.

The complaint further alleges that OSU granted a permit to Sigma Chi for the party, but failed to supervise or inspect the site.

“As a result of OSU’s negligence, Manning was injured,” the lawsuit alleges.

In addition, the lawsuit says the city of Corvallis let the fraternity use a fire hydrant to fill the pool and, in doing so, participated “in the creating of a public nuisance.”

City Manager Jon Nelson dismissed the allegation, saying officials typically accommodate requests for large amounts water. What happens after that isn’t the city’s fault, he said.

An OSU spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Steve Bush, an attorney with the Portland firm Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, which is representing the fraternity, called the matter “a very unfortunate situation,” but said he would not discuss a pending lawsuit.

Schaeffer said Manning, who was not a member of Sigma Chi but was involved in the Greek system, came to the party late in the night. Schaeffer described the event as a “drunken binge.”

“It’s a huge blowout the week before finals week,” he said.

Manning dived head-first into the pool and instantly lost control of his limbs, he said.

“For Kevin, the most frightening thing for him is he goes in, can’t move, and he’s underwater,” Schaeffer said. “Nobody’s coming to his assistance.”

When Manning didn’t surface, another reveler pulled him to safety.

Schaeffer said Manning is “a good student, good-looking kid, popular, great personality.”

“He had it all,” Schaeffer said. “Now he’s a quadriplegic.”