Columbia Gas Explosions Settlement Payouts May Range From $50 To $15,000
BOSTON (AP) — A plan to divvy up a $143 million settlement from last September's natural gas explosions in Massachusetts has been proposed.
Lawyers involved in a class action lawsuit against utility company Columbia Gas filed their proposal Wednesday in Essex County Superior Court in Salem.
The plan calls for six categories of payouts ranging from $50 for a "nominal" disruption to $15,000 for a "major" disruption. An estimated 175,000 impacted people and businesses can qualify. It also would award roughly $28 million of the settlement to the lawyers.
The settlement is separate from an $80 million payout Columbia Gas made to Lawrence, Andover and North Andover.
A court hearing on the plan is slated for Oct. 7. Columbia Gas didn't comment. The 2018 disaster killed one person and injured dozens more.
(© Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)