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Saturday, May 4, 2013

The Mess With Texas

Right, Rick Perry, hand's off business in your state, so we have this reported last night: criminal owner of that fertilizer plant in West had insured his plant for only $1 million for liability.  So that's leaves state taxpayers with possibly $100 million bill.   And as we now know, there are hundreds of other ticking time bombs around the state, and thousands around the USA.
Tyler lawyer Randy C. Roberts, who has filed two negligence suits against West Fertilizer on behalf of victims, said the company’s policy was deeply inadequate. “A million dollars is a pathetic amount for this type of dangerous activity,” Roberts said.
“If you want to drive a truck down the interstate, you’ve got to have $750,000 in coverage, even if you’re just carrying eggs,” Roberts said. “But if you want to put this ammonium nitrate into this town next to that school and that nursing home and those houses, you’re not required to carry insurance.”

1 comment:

Paul Rosenberg said...

I've been reporting for an alternative biweekly in the Los Angeles harbor area since 2002. We have an analogous under-regulated ultra-hazardous facility--a liquid petroleum storage facility. Folks have been trying to get it shut down off and on since the 1970s, shortly after it was built.

Totally different explosive materials, but the danger is 10-100 times more & the regulatory joke is virtually the same.

This is just one more parallel: Last year, they promised to tell a nearby small city all about their wonderful insurance coverage. A couple of months ago, they said, "Nevermind!"