REXNORD/FALK EXPLOSION

December 6, 2006: Shortly after 8 a.m. an explosion erupted at the Falk Corp. warehouse near downtown Milwaukee igniting a fire and sending debris and smoke into the sky. Officials have indicated that at least 44 people were injured and 3 people have died.

Background:

On the morning of December 6th, an explosion ignited a massive fire and evacuation of the employees at the Falk Corp. Warehouse near downtown Milwaukee. The Falk explosion started a fire and caused damage to property and cars, injuring 46 people and killing 3. At least 500 employees were evacuated by bus to another location away from the warehouse to be assessed and picked up by their families. Concern about smoke from the fire caused construction crews working near the facility to be sent home. The office of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been sent in to investigate this incident.

According to a recent medical examiner's report, Falk Corp. was testing its back-up liquid propane system shortly before the explosion happened Wednesday morning. Falk Corp. has natural gas as a power source provided by WE Energies. In addition, Falk had a back-up system of propane tanks in place if more power was needed. A spokesman from the energy company stated that they were unaware of any interruptions of service that would require Falk to test their system and unless it was a routine procedure, they were unsure why testing would take place. Also in the report, "there was a smell of gas and all systems were shut down," after 40 minutes of testing and then the decision was made for evacuation.

Falk has a history of code violations, including violations that could have lead to death or serious injury and that the company knew of it or should have known about it. According to records from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the federal government has fined Falk twice in the last five years.

What can I do?

Zimmerman Reed is experienced in handling cases that impact our communities. We welcome any questions you may have. If you were one of the many that have injury, property damage, or car damage caused by the Falk Corp. explosion, give us a call, we would like to help.

For more information, contact attorney Barry Reed at 1.800.493.2827 or if you prefer, click here to send an email.