Blitz Gas Can Attorney
In addition to our typical roles representing our clients, Linville Johnson and specifically our Blitz gas can attorney, Anthony C. Johnson, feel compelled to educate and inform the consumer public about glaring dangers that lie within the four walls of most of our homes. For instance, most individuals have a plastic Blitz gas can stored in their garage or shed to use in the event of an emergency. However, did you know that these products can be extremely dangerous and volatile? Some accidents even result in permanent injury or death due to sudden gas can explosions? Of the millions of gas cans produced in the U.S. each year, 95 percent are plastic. Blitz, a large manufacturer of these products, is responsible for producing nearly 75 percent, or 150 million of these cans. Amongst this mass of Blitz gas cans, not one of them came with what’s called a flame arrester, a tiny, cheap mesh part that is intended to disrupt the flame so fumes have the potential to absorb into the atmosphere when an individual pours the gasoline. Because Blitz failed to spend the money and add this protective mesh component to this product, the Blitz gas can has led to many explosions of the Blitz gas cans across the country causing severe injuries, burns, and even death.
If you or a loved one have been injured in a Blitz gas can explosion, you have legal rights. Contact the our Blitz gas can attorney, Anthony C. Johnson, to learn more about filing a Blitz gas can lawsuit and seeking compensation for you or a loved one’s injuries.
How do you know if you have a Blitz Gas Can?
The cans produced by Blitz continued to be used by unsuspecting individuals, and the manufacturer allegedly provided minimal warnings pertaining to the potential flammability of the gasoline and plastic. As a result, it has been reported that 75 separate incidents concerning burns and deaths have occurred. Fourteen people, including six children, have been burned to death, and in each of these 75 cases, the lack of a flame arrester was the cause. Additionally, the Consumer Product Safety Commission analyzed data since 1998 and found that 11 fatalities and 1,200 emergency room visits were due to gas can explosions.
In one incident on September 16, 2003, a three-year-old boy was moving his tricycle into the cellar of his home when he bumped into a plastic Blitz gas can, tipping it over. Vapors allegedly created a flashback fire and ignited the pilot light from the hot water heater. The boy’s feet and shoes were melted to the floor, leaving him immobile and trapped in the flames of the explosion. His mother rescued him, suffering from burns on her hands, while the boy was burned on more than 47 percent of his body. Unfortunately, although he spent months in the hospital recovering, he lost his left ear and is severely disfigured on his body, arms and face. He continues to receive treatment 10 years later.
Blitz Gas Can Explosion Side Effects
Victims have sustained explosion injuries such as burns from head to toe that often require lengthy hospital stays, surgeries, and skin grafts that can add up to millions of dollars in medical expenses. In other incidents, victims have died from the effects of third- and fourth-degree burns or from the explosions themselves. Here are some of the typical injuries suffered by Blitz gas can explosions:
- Severe Burns
- Skin Graphs
- Death
- Scorched Lungs
- Amputation and Loss of Limb
Blitz Gas Can Attorney Files Lawsuits in U.S.
Manufacturers have the legal responsibility to place warning labels on products that pose a threat of serious injury or death. Unfortunately, Blitz failed to provide such a label. Several Blitz gas can attorneys have filed lawsuits against the manufacturer on behalf of those who sustained serious injuries as a result of the allegedly defective products.
Court documents indicate that at least 80 claims have been filed over the past two decades on behalf of victims. Lawyers maintain that these products are not safe because they are prone to flashback explosions, or the result of escaping vapors mixing with a flame or spark. Most of the Blitz gas can attorneys have named two defendants in their filed lawsuits: Blitz as the manufacturer of the Blitz gas can, and Wal-Mart as the retailer of the Blitz gas can.
In fact, in December 2013, Blitz Gas Can Attorneys caused Wal-Mart to agreed to pay $25 million to help settle Blitz gas can lawsuits. Although the retailer will contribute to the settlements, Wal-Mart does not believe that it should be held accountable for the incidents that occurred as the result of the Blitz gas cans. It has recently been reported that Blitz is bankrupt due to the 80 lawsuits filed against the company over the past decade and that Wal-Mart has been named as a defendant in 24 cases.
The two companies agreed to pay $161 million toward settlements before the Blitz gas can attorneys begin hearings, although both parties still deny any responsibility or defect in the product that would result in injuries. Still, although manufacturers assert that individuals should know how to properly use the products and that any injuries that occur are the result of misuse, plaintiffs argue that the cans are more prone to internal combustion and are therefore unsafe, defective and dangerous because they lack a flame arrester. Testing conducted by the U.S. Department of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms concluded that 13 out of 17 Blitz gas cans exploded even when they were used in a safe manner, resulting in 13-foot-high flames and liquid burning gasoline splattered over a five-foot area.
Do You Need a Blitz Gas Can Attorney?
If you or someone you love have been injured in a Blitz gas can explosion, contact the Blitz gas can attorney at Linville Johnson, Anthony C. Johnson, today for a free, no-obligation consultation and to learn more about your legal rights. We will help you to determine if you are eligible to recover damages for your injuries, and we will connect you with an experienced attorney who will handle your Blitz gas can lawsuit. Depending on the circumstances surrounding the incident, you may be eligible to seek compensation for your injuries.
