Watson Explosion One Year Later

Dick Law Firm Files First Lawsuit

The filing on behalf of Sophia Navarro by lawyer Eric Dick of The Dick Law Firm in Houston claims damages by the defendant, Watson Grinding and Processing. It applies to both a temporary restraining order and a temporary injunction to preserve facts. The case clarifies that the blast badly destroyed the house of the appellant. Residents of the Spring Branch area have suffered various levels of damage to their homes.

At 12:15 p.m., Dick lodged the case in Harris County circuit court. That same day. Houston Fire Chief Sam Pena said in a press conference after the explosion that 190 of the 199 homes in the West Branch and Carverdale communities near the plant had to be accessed by city authorities in terms of habitability. For many weeks, a number of these households would not be livable.

Don't Make Assumptions.

One common mistake for consumers is to make assumptions as to whether their structure has been damaged. Homeowners are well-advised to contact an experienced property attorney and let experts decide how a home was damaged. Often house owners volunteer information to the insurance company or third-parties. Later, the property owner realizes that they did not correctly appreciate the information they provided. You should get a free consultation from a property damage attorney if there is a question of whether your suffered property damage or whether your home insurance policy covers the damage.

One Year Since Watson Explosion

Sunday, January 24, 2021, represents precisely one year after Watson Grinding's deadly blast at 4525 Gessner Road in Houston. The early morning explosion rocked areas of Houston, throwing hundreds of families out of bed.

A year later, the walls, the tattered tarp, and the renovation noises filled the community just west of the plant that stored toxic chemicals.

Residents will never forget this. Maria Uriostegui explained from the front porch of her son's home in the Westbranch neighborhood. Her mom is 70 years old, and anytime anything goes down on the board, she's panicked. Despite the trauma and losses, Uriostegui remains optimistic for the rehabilitation of her kin.

Her house is that one. That's my building. Uriostegui explained, referring to the nearby home that is currently under renovation. It took her a year to get a license from the county. She just began constructing on January 1, 2021.

She plans to move her elderly mother to a brand new house later this year. Uriostegui reveals she has been living near Watson Grinding for almost 20 years. Like all of her neighbors, she demonstrates she had no idea that the neighborhood property had contained toxic chemicals.

Just after 4 a.m. on January 24, 2020, the plant's explosion killed two Watson Grinding workers, disabled dozens, and destroyed hundreds of houses. The blast force pushed several residences further from their foundations.

"So, it's been a year. A couple of my clients are homeless," said attorney Eric Dick, who claims he has clients whose houses, more than a mile from Watson Grinding, have been destroyed by the blast. Dick was the first attorney to submit a case against Watson Grinding.

"Between $20 million to $30 million is what we estimate for physical and personal property loss," Dick said. "No payout. Zero."

Watson Grinding applied for bankruptcy in the weeks after the blast. Cases are taken to the judiciary.

The ATF concluded its inquiry and forwarded the report to the Houston Fire Department at the end of last year.

Houston Fire Chief Sam Pena claims the blast and fire were undetermined only after further information came to light. Early in the inquiry, the ATF ruled out arson.

Pena suggests the idea is that a fire began when the rusted section of the pipe had spilled propylene, which had been sparked by an electrical flame, something as necessary as a light switch that had been turned on.

The City of Houston just approved amendments to the Dangerous Business Ordinance. Before the reforms, if you were keeping products outside, you didn't have to obey the request. And then this kind of distance fills to make sure citizens have to follow it, even though it's stored outside.

Following a string of explosions at chemical plants in Harris County in 2019, Harris County Fire Marshals have started monitoring dangerous chemical assets in 2020.

Inspections were restricted due to the pandemic and regulations to minimize the spread of COVID-19, the Harris County Fire Marshals Office was able to stroll across 50 properties last year. Their reports can enable responders to respond to chemical fires by knowing which substances are contained on the premises and which method is best utilized to extinguish the burn.

One year after Watson Grinding's deadly blast, some people still live in their homes where there is destruction. The blast's consequences and even being witnessed and felt by a group that remains stuck in time. When residents start talking about what happened, they still get a lot of feeling.

YOU CAN OBTAIN A HIGHLY SKILLED EXPLOSION LAWYER

At Dick Law Firm, PLLC, we are committed to fighting for the total compensation you deserve. When you retain our services, we fight to protect your rights as a policyholder.

Hiring a highly-skilled property insurance attorney will help by:

• Significantly increases the value of your claim
• Learning all of the ins and outs of your claims
• Helping you navigate the claims process and negotiations
• Validating the cause and extent of the damage
• Informing you of all possible avenues for recovery
• Notifying you of all relevant insurance laws
• Access to doctors and medical experts
• Access to counsels and mental anguish experts

Many residents of Spring Branch have unknowingly suffered property damage to their home. We are helping your friends and neighbors protect their legal rights from the Spring Branch Explosion. We want to help you. Let our experts inspect your home for hidden property damage. You have nothing to lose! The results may shock you.

If you have suffered explosion damage, you can count on us to do everything possible to rectify the situation. We aim to resolve a claim as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Please speak with our team at 833-7RIGHTS today! Consultations are FREE.

What are the most common injuries linked to the plant explosion?

When a Houston plant explosion occurs, those involved will suffer permanent injuries from hearing loss, burns, scarring, and disfigurement.

Each accident victim we represent has specific financial situations, and we plan each case according to how the accident has changed their lives.

The most common plant-explosion-related injuries in Houston are:

• Chemical, electrical, or heat burns.
• Concussions, severe head trauma, and sports-related concussions.
• Crushed injuries.
• Severe damages caused by faulty equipment.
• Eye injury, including retinal bleeding and pan-retinal retino-choroid detachment.
• Drop from heights.
• Injured by dropping objects or machinery.
• Impact trauma and concussive injury caused by being slamming to the ground, walls, or other things.
• Internal ear damage, such as hearing loss.
• Lung damage from poisonous ingested gases.
• Bone and joint fractures, including injuries to muscles, ligaments, and bones.
• Poisonings due to toxic fumes/gases
• Penetrating injuries caused by flying debris.
• Severe lacerations and disfigurations, resulting in long-lasting scars.
• Smoke inhalation.
• Wrongful death.

If our clients are put in unfair danger by the negligence of another, whether it is a coworker, contractor, boss, or the company itself, our Chemical plant explosion law firm in Houston can defend their interests while seeking the best financial result possible for their particular circumstances.

Explosion victim homeless

Property damage lawyer Eric Dick said he is now representing over 500 Spring Branch residents whose homes have been severely impacted by the northwest Houston explosion. Two people were killed, and more than 200 homes were damaged Friday morning after the blast at the Watson Grinding and Manufacturing facility.

“My clients have no place to stay; they are homeless,” Dick said.

Dick said he filed the first lawsuit on behalf of one of his clients Friday, hours after the explosion compromised the home structure less than a mile away from the manufacturing facility.

Residents are now suing the company for negligence for failing to store chemicals properly.

Dick will file a second lawsuit on behalf of his client Van Nguyen, whose home was among the most damaged.

“I was so shocked about everything gone. I’m homeless,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen said it took her seven years to save up and buy the house.

“I loved that house that was my first house ever. I spent lots of time decorating that house,” Nguyen said.