BOZEMAN – A second lawsuit was filed Thursday against NorthWestern Energy, saying the utility company is to blame for a natural gas explosion in Bozeman that killed one woman and destroyed four downtown buildings.
The lawsuit was filed in District Court by four business and property owners whose buildings were affected by the March 5 blast, which was caused by a separation on a 2-inch service line between the main gas line and the meter for the Montana Trails Gallery. Tara Reistad Bowman, 36, was killed in the explosion.
The owners say NorthWestern and its senior manager of gas system integrity in Bozeman, Leonard Leveaux, knew or should have known of the line’s deteriorated condition.
NorthWestern spokeswoman Claudia Rapkoch said Thursday she could not comment on pending litigation.
But the company’s CEO, Bob Rowe, said last month that NorthWestern is not legally liable for the explosion and that “natural forces” are likely to blame for the cracked service line. Company officials also say there is no evidence that the line or threaded fitting were defective or had been installed improperly.
The business and property owners are seeking compensatory damages for the loss of the buildings and associated property, and loss of past, present and future business and income associated with the explosion.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Ann Bates, who owned the building destroyed at 221 and 223 E. Main; Sheryl Sanders, owner of the children’s boutique Lillylu; and Brian Tolstedt and Judy Doerr of Tolstedt Architects.
Thursday’s lawsuit was the second filed against NorthWestern Energy for the deadly explosion.
Earlier this month, American Legion Post 14 in Bozeman and its manager Tom Jones sued, claiming the company and its officials knew the service line had deteriorated and was unsafe.