Baron & Budd Investigating Potential Lawsuits Regarding Porter Ranch Gas Leak

Natural Gas Leak Has Sickened or Displaced Hundreds of Area Residents

LOS ANGELES (Dec. 15, 2015) – The national law firm of Baron & Budd is investigating potential lawsuits against Southern California Gas Co. (SoCal Gas) and its parent company, Sempra Energy, regarding a major gas leak in the Porter Ranch residential area. The leak has sickened many people and displaced more than a thousand area residents, according to an article that appeared on the website of KNBC-TV.

On October 23, 2015, SoCal Gas detected a leak in a gas line near the company’s Aliso Canyon facility. The leak was located in a pipe casing buried hundreds of feet below the surface of a natural gas well. Since then, natural gas has continued to flow into the ground and seep above the surface, causing noxious odors.

Many residents have left the area as a result, and hundreds have reported suffering health issues, according to the television station. These health problems have included nosebleeds, severe coughing, upper respiratory problems, rashes, nausea and more. While efforts are underway to drill a relief well and cap the one that is leaking, it is estimated the leak will take another three to four months to fully contain.

According to KCET-TV, an estimated 50 metric tons of methane had leaked into the atmosphere each hour since the incident. As of November 24, the television station reported, enough methane had escaped to equal the amount of greenhouse gases created by burning more than 900,000 pounds of coal.

“This is an extremely disturbing incident that has not only led to a great amount of human suffering, but could also have a devastating impact on the surrounding environment,” said Roland Tellis, co-manager of Baron & Budd’s Los Angeles office. “We will work tirelessly to hold accountable the parties that are responsible for causing this disaster.”

About Baron & Budd, P.C.

The law firm of Baron & Budd, P.C., with offices in Dallas, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Austin and Los Angeles, is a nationally recognized law firm with a nearly 40-year history of "Protecting What’s Right" for people, communities and businesses harmed by negligence. Baron & Budd’s size and resources enable the firm to take on large and complex cases. The firm represents individuals and government and business entities in areas as diverse as dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical devices, environmental contamination, the Gulf oil spill, financial fraud, overtime violations, deceptive advertising, automotive defects, trucking accidents, nursing home abuse, and asbestos-related illnesses such as mesothelioma.