Gas Explosion Rocks Durham, North Carolina
Michael Burg, the founding shareholder of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine, was interviewed this week by the Wake/Raleigh Government Reporter for The News and Observer regarding the Durham, North Carolina gas explosions.
On Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at 10:07 am, a gas explosion, which is still under investigation, shook a neighborhood in Durham, N.C. The blasts occurred on 15 North Duke Street – historically known as the “Studebaker Building”, a building that houses Prescient Co Inc., Main Street Clinical Associates, and Kaffeinate Coffee Shop. The owner of Kaffeinate Coffee Shop died in the blast. The building is owned by a west coast real estate company called 2050 Bentley, LLC. The explosion involved a total of 15 buildings and catastrophically damaged one structure.
Apparently, a contractor boring under a sidewalk hit a 2-inch gas line, causing the leak. A gas leak was first reported to Durham officials around 9:30 am. The explosion occurred roughly 15 minutes after a human resources manager sent an email warning that the city’s fire department was investigating the smell of gas. Dominion Energy states it shut the flow of gas at approximately 11:10 am.
Dominion Energy said in a press release Wednesday that subsidiary company PSNC Energy had received a call about “third-party” damage to a natural gas line in Durham. A PSNC worker responded, and the explosion “occurred shortly thereafter.” The company said additional crews arrived and shut off the gas.
Michael Burg, and the nationally recognized Colorado-based law firm of Burg Simpson, has worked to assist many victims across the nation who have been harmed by gas explosions. Michael Burg and his team have decades of experience litigating complex gas explosion cases and have been dedicated to holding those responsible for the blasts accountable. Mr. Burg has received multi-million dollar verdicts in these types of cases, and was recently appointed to the 2019 Executive Committee, for the Lawrence/Andover, Massachusetts Gas Explosion Cases by the District Court Judge
