SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A California jury has awarded $16.5 million to the family of a 28-year-old woman who died after participating in a radio station’s water-drinking contest.

Jennifer Strange, a mother of three, died of acute water intoxication in January 2007 after the challenge to see which contestant could drink the most water without using the restroom. A Nintendo Wii video game was the prize for winning the “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” contest.

Ruling Oct. 29 in a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by Strange’s family, Sacramento County jurors found Entercom Sacramento LLC, a subsidiary of Philadelphia-based Entercom Communications Corp., liable for the actions of its employees at KDND-FM. The Sacramento radio station fired 10 employees after the death.