Bridgeport, PA; (Apr-24-08) A class action lawsuit was brought against the Continental Business Center, after a devastating fire in 2001 caused over 100 businesses and individuals to suffer losses. Reports of the incident show that the fire destroyed the Continental Business Center in Bridgeport, Montgomery County, PA. The suit named 16 defendants, who have settled separate lawsuits over the last five years. Legal counsel for the plaintiffs stated that economic experts testified that the businesses and individuals who lost their property in the fire and lost income, lost between $30 and $41 million.
Experts stated that circuit breakers had gotten wet in a flood two years earlier and those breakers had not been replaced. Over the course of the next two years they had corroded, and arcing occurred within the breaker box. The box caught on the fire, the fire spread from outside the box. The report stated that the blame lies with those who didn't fix the breaker, and tenants who had materials stored in an improper way, which allowed the fire to spread. County records verify that over 500 firefighters fought the blaze over three days.
As part of a settlement reached, a deal worth $35 million has been reached, resolving the class action lawsuit involving the largest fire in Montgomery County's history. [
