Class Action Status Requested To Benefit All Persons Who Reside in the State of Louisiana and who Sustained Damages as a Result of the Dow Chemical Leak.
Parker Waichman Alonso LLP, together with the Law Office of Robert M. Becnel, Salas & Co., L.C., and Herman Herman Katz & Cotler LLP, announces that it has filed suit on behalf of several Louisiana residents who sustained personal injuries and / or property damage as a result of a release of the chemical ethyl acrylate at the Dow Chemical Company's St. Charles Operation facility in Hahnville, Louisiana on July 7, 2009. The lawsuit, which was filed in the Twenty-Ninth Judicial District Court in the State of Louisiana, St. Charles Parish, seeks class action status to benefit all Louisiana residents who sustained residents who sustained personal injuries and / or property damage as a result of this incident.
The lawsuit alleges that the ethyl acrylate released during the accident is hazardous to both people and property. The plaintiffs claim they suffered physical, property, financial and psychological damages as a result of the ethyl acrylate leak, and that those damages were the result of Dow Chemical's negligence.
The lawsuit alleges that Dow Chemical knew or should have known that the tank and equipment were faulty, and that the substance they released was harmful. The lawsuit also charges that Dow Chemical failed to take necessary action to mitigate the danger from the spill, or provide adequate and timely warning of the leak. The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory damages in an amount to be determined by the court.
The Dow Chemical ethyl acrylate leak occurred when a vent on a 640,000 gallon storage tank malfunctioned, releasing ethyl acrylate into the surrounding community. The release of ethyl acrylate produced an acrid odor that could be detected as far away as New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish. People living around Dow Chemical's St. Charles Operations facility were forced to evacuate, and dozens of people were treated in the hospital for ailments typical of exposure to ethyl acrylate fumes, including eye, nose and throat irritation.
SOURCE Parker Waichman Alonso LLP