DALLAS, Aug. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Attorneys for
Adelmira Chavez, whose home in
Waxahachie, Texas, was demolished
by a natural gas explosion last year, have filed a lawsuit against
Dallas-based Atmos Energy Corp.
(NYSE: ATO) based on claims that the company failed to act on
reports of a severed gas line after gas service in the Saddlebrook
Estates neighborhood was disrupted for four days prior to the
explosion.
More than 20 other Saddlebrook Estates residents who suffered
physical injuries, emotional trauma or property damage are pressing
claims against Atmos in the same lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed in the 40th State District Court
in Ellis County, also claims that
Dallas-based Atmos negligently
located and installed excess flow valves during construction of the
new residential subdivision. If properly located on the gas service
line, the valve would have immediately shut off the leaking gas
when the break occurred.
Ms. Chavez was severely injured in the blast, suffering second-
and third-degree burns on her face, arms, stomach, back and legs,
as well as a broken arm. Her brother, Jaime
Rodriguez, also suffered severe burns to his face and
arms.
Expert reports and other documents filed in the case indicate
that the explosion resulted from an Atmos gas line being cut by
contractors who were working to install underground fiber optic
cable for Dallas-based AT&T.
Although no specific details are being provided, a resolution has
been reached with AT&T and its contractor, Burleson, Texas-based Circle L
Construction.
In addition to Ms. Chavez's home, three other homes that were in
the path of the explosion are considered total losses, while seven
others were significantly damaged.
"It is clear from the information we've uncovered that Atmos
failed to comply with federal law governing the location of excess
flow valves designed to protect against gas lines damaged by
carless excavators by shutting off the gas flow before disaster
strikes. Atmos provided no degree of oversight in an active
construction area that company managers knew contained very real
and potential problems," says Tom
Carse of Dallas' Carse Law
Firm, attorney for Ms. Chavez and the other plaintiffs living or
working in the subdivision at the time of the incident. "Atmos
personnel violated the company's policies and procedures at
multiple steps leading to this tragedy, but they seem content to
try and shift responsibility to the other companies involved."
The explosion occurred on the morning of September 21, 2015, when Ms. Chavez turned on her
electric cooktop to prepare breakfast. She and her neighbors were
completely unaware that the natural gas service line serving her
neighbor's home across the street at 112 Arabian Road and a 4-inch
sewer line serving the Chavez home at 113 Arabian Road had been
breached more than four days before. Those breaches allowed heavily
diffused, odorless natural gas to enter the Chavez home.
"Atmos has never warned its 3 million customers in more than
1,400 communities that deodorization can and will occur when
escaped natural gas passes through soil, although there are
low-cost and readily available devices that can detect leaking
natural gas in any form," says Mr. Carse. "It's a miracle that Ms.
Chavez and her brother survived this explosion."
Co-counsel for the Chavez family include attorneys Micah Dortch and Brent
Cooper of Cooper & Scully P.C. in Dallas.
The case is Adelmira Chavez et
al v. Atmos Energy Corporation et al, No. 92375, filed in the
40th State District Court in Ellis County.
The Carse Law firm is a Dallas-based legal practice with a focus on
helping families seeking justice for the wrongful death of a loved
one and for those injured in accidents of all types due to the
negligence of others. For more information on the firm visit
http://carselaw.com/
Contact: Barry Pound,
1-214-559-4630
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SOURCE Carse Law Firm