First lawsuit filed in deadly Oak Cliff apartment explosion seeks $1m in damages
A survivor of Thursday’s deadly natural gas explosion that destroyed an Oak Cliff apartment building has filed the first lawsuit in connection to the incident, his attorneys said on Friday.
The plaintiff, complex resident Onecimo Ponce Mendoza, alleges that he awoke to a loud noise in his apartment at the time of the explosion, according to the suit. Mendoza exited his bedroom to find that the roof of his unit had collapsed, allowing intense heat and heavy smoke into the unit.
Mendoza searched for his roommate before exiting the burning building, and suffered burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries in the fire, his attorneys wrote.
Mendoza’s suit alleges that the complex’s natural gas provider, Atmos Energy, was negligent in failing to adequately detect gas leaks and maintain essential equipment on the property.
The gas company also failed to warn residents about the dangers associated with gas leaks and had a “longstanding pattern of valuing profits over human life,” the suit states.
Atmos Energy denied initial responsibility for damage to the gas line shortly after the explosion on Thursday, saying in part that “a construction company completely unrelated” to Atmos damaged the line.
“We are deeply saddened by the incident that occurred yesterday in Oak Cliff. Our hearts go out to the people who were tragically lost, their families, and everyone who has been impacted,” Atmos officials said in a statement Friday.
The complex’s owner said through an attorney that the property is under contract for sale, and that the buyer’s engineering firm was conducting soil testing at the site before the explosion, according to Star-Telegram media partner WFAA-TV. An attorney for the complex’s owner said the owner was “shocked by this outcome and likewise mourns this outcome.”
The engineering firm, Carrollton-based ECS Southwest, called the explosion a “terrible tragedy” and said their personnel were not on scene at the time of the explosion, according to WFAA. The firm also said the 811 hotline reported that utility location had been performed prior to the start of work at the complex.
“Beyond that, the cause is under investigation, and we don’t think it would be appropriate to speculate while that work is ongoing,” the statement reads.
Mendoza’s lawsuit seeks upward of $1 million in damages.
