SAN ANTONIO – Two North Side residents filed a lawsuit accusing CPS Energy of negligence after they were injured in home explosions earlier this month along with three others.
Jose Ochoa and Mayte Terrie Reeves filed the joint lawsuit Monday in Bexar County.
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On April 21, their home was the second to explode in the 15000 block of Preston Hollow Drive, near Thousand Oaks Drive. The San Antonio Fire Department said the explosions were likely related to a natural gas buildup.
>> What we know about the North Side home explosions that hospitalized 5
Ten households were evacuated following the explosions. According to the lawsuit, Ochoa and Reeves were evacuated after the first explosion but were then told it was safe to return home.
The lawsuit states natural gas had leaked underground from a CPS Energy line, forming a “volatile gas cloud” inside their home, causing the second explosion and fire.
Ochoa and Reeves sustained serious and permanent physical injuries and damages, their lawsuit claims.
A hospital spokesperson previously told KSAT Reeves was in critical condition but was later downgraded to “fair,” while Ochoa was in “good” condition.
A CPS Energy spokeswoman told KSAT the utility does not comment on active litigation.
Ochoa and Reeves accuse CPS Energy of failure to maintain its system, failure to equip and train employees to safely perform work and failure to inspect the work performed near their residence.
They are requesting a jury trial and more than $1 million each in damages.
The CPS Energy Board of Trustees met on April 27, nearly one week after the explosions. The utility has not answered KSAT’s questions about what led up to the explosions.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the investigation into the explosions. The federal agency expects to release a preliminary report in about 30 days, which will “contain factual information gathered during the initial phase of the investigation.”
A probable cause of the explosions, as well as any contributing factors, will be released in a more comprehensive report in approximately 12 to 24 months, the NTSB said.
North East Independent School District math teacher Kimberly Nowell and her husband Tim, a pastor at Wayside Chapel, were also injured in the explosions along with their daughter, Ali.
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