Wednesday, January 30, 2008
LOTS OF INVESTIGATION NEEDED HERE
RV Business
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Four men burned in a fire at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in September have sued, alleging that their injuries were caused by an overfilled and improperly manufactured propane tank and an improperly designed RV generator, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Dave Smith, Darryl Jackson, Stuart Givens and Kenny Burleson and the company they all work for, Brown Distributing, filed the lawsuit Tuesday in District Court in Travis County against various companies that leased and made the propane tank, as well as the manufacturer of the recreational vehicle.
The defendants include Evergreen RV Center, Coachmen Industries Inc., Coachmen Recreational Vehicle Co., Manchester Tank and Equipment, Rotarex and Harsco Corp.
Two of the men who were burned were flown to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, and one had burns over 40% of his body, said their lawyer, Jim Ewbank.
While all of the men have returned to work for Brown Distributing, they are still recovering and three of them probably will have permanent scarring, including one man who had the word "staff" burned into his back from the letters on his T-shirt, Ewbank said.
The men were working at the ACL Festival in Zilker Park on Sept. 14 for Brown Distributing, which was selling beer, when the fire started, the newspaper reported. They heard a hiss and smelled gas, said Ewbank, so they opened a compartment on the right side of the recreational vehicle to move some food away from the odor. A propane tank on the vehicle's left side then ignited, he said. "There was sort of like a flash of gas catching on fire, and it knocked them to the ground," he said.
The fire was caused, the suit claims, when the propane tank was overfilled by the leasing company; the valve that was supposed to stop overfilling malfunctioned or was overridden; and heat from the exhaust pipe of the RV's generator, placed too close to the propane tank, caused the gas in the tank to expand and be released by a pressure valve. The valve stayed open too long, causing the escaping gas to be ignited by either the generator or muffler, Ewbank said.
The amount of damages sought by the defendants was not specified because they are still receiving medical treatment, the lawyer said. Damages specified for Brown Distributing totaled $219,658.64, he said. Attorneys for the companies named in the suit either refused to comment or could not be reached.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Four men burned in a fire at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in September have sued, alleging that their injuries were caused by an overfilled and improperly manufactured propane tank and an improperly designed RV generator, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Dave Smith, Darryl Jackson, Stuart Givens and Kenny Burleson and the company they all work for, Brown Distributing, filed the lawsuit Tuesday in District Court in Travis County against various companies that leased and made the propane tank, as well as the manufacturer of the recreational vehicle.
The defendants include Evergreen RV Center, Coachmen Industries Inc., Coachmen Recreational Vehicle Co., Manchester Tank and Equipment, Rotarex and Harsco Corp.
Two of the men who were burned were flown to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, and one had burns over 40% of his body, said their lawyer, Jim Ewbank.
While all of the men have returned to work for Brown Distributing, they are still recovering and three of them probably will have permanent scarring, including one man who had the word "staff" burned into his back from the letters on his T-shirt, Ewbank said.
The men were working at the ACL Festival in Zilker Park on Sept. 14 for Brown Distributing, which was selling beer, when the fire started, the newspaper reported. They heard a hiss and smelled gas, said Ewbank, so they opened a compartment on the right side of the recreational vehicle to move some food away from the odor. A propane tank on the vehicle's left side then ignited, he said. "There was sort of like a flash of gas catching on fire, and it knocked them to the ground," he said.
The fire was caused, the suit claims, when the propane tank was overfilled by the leasing company; the valve that was supposed to stop overfilling malfunctioned or was overridden; and heat from the exhaust pipe of the RV's generator, placed too close to the propane tank, caused the gas in the tank to expand and be released by a pressure valve. The valve stayed open too long, causing the escaping gas to be ignited by either the generator or muffler, Ewbank said.
The amount of damages sought by the defendants was not specified because they are still receiving medical treatment, the lawyer said. Damages specified for Brown Distributing totaled $219,658.64, he said. Attorneys for the companies named in the suit either refused to comment or could not be reached.
