Fatal Plum house explosion spurs lawsuits by insurers for Rustic Ridge homeowners

Lawsuits were filed Thursday on behalf of insurance companies representing three dozen homeowners in Plum whose properties were affected by the fatal 2023 house explosion in the Rustic Ridge development.

The two complaints, filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, name as defendants Penneco Oil Co.; Peoples Natural Gas; A.O. Smith Corp., which sold the water heater believed by the plaintiffs to have malfunctioned in the home that blew up; and Grasinger Homes, which built the homes in the neighborhood.

Peoples Natural Gas issued a statement Thursday evening. Messages left for the other companies were not immediately returned.

The listed plaintiffs include neighbors who live on Rustic Ridge Drive, Ross Hollow Road, Ridgetop Drive, Timberwood Court, Overbrook Terrace, Stonedge Court, Meadow Wood Drive, Brookside Drive and Regency Drive.

The lawsuits were filed by a Montgomery County law firm, de Luca| Levine. The firm lists itself as practicing subrogation law, which seeks to recover claims paid by insurance companies.

The latest lawsuits come on the heels of complaints filed this month by the surviving family members of the six people who were killed in the Aug. 12, 2023, explosion: Heather and Paul Oravitz; Kevin Sebunia; Michael Thomas; Casey Clontz and his son, Keegan Clontz.

The lawsuits allege that natural gas from a pipeline leak filled the Oravitz basement and then ignited, destroying three houses and damaging a dozen more.

No official cause for the explosion has been reached. The Allegheny County fire marshal said the point of origin for the explosion was inside the home.

“All potential outside factors like wells, pipelines, ground gas propagation and other utilities were all inspected and tested at several levels by each of the associated agencies and companies,” according to a September 2023 statement from the fire marshal’s office. “All findings to date confirm that there are no factors external to the home that exploded that led to the explosion.”

In its written statement, Peoples Natural Gas said it had received the legal filing.

“This tragic event has been devastating to the friends and families of those who perished, the Plum Borough community, and Peoples,” the statement reads.

“The safety of our customers, employees and the communities we serve remains our top priority. When this event occurred, Peoples immediately worked with the authorities to assist in the investigation to determine what happened.

“It is important to note that the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission conducted an extensive investigation and … found no evidence linking Peoples’ public utility infrastructure to the cause of the incident.”

The lawsuits include claims for negligence, recklessness and strict liability and allege that the plaintiffs suffered property damage because of the defendants’ actions.

Among the allegations: that the companies failed to stop the gas leak; failed to properly pressurize the subject gas line; failed to vent the gas line; failed to properly inspect the gas lines; and failed to warn the families in the development of the potential danger.