Faulty oven burners caused a fire that destroyed the former North Star Foods plant in St. Charles a year ago, the company claims in a civil lawsuit now transferred to U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.
The fire on April 17, 2009, destroyed North Star's facility and caused more than $55 million in damages, according to the complaint, which seeks damages in excess of $75,000 on each of four counts.
The lawsuit originally was filed in Winona District Court and was transferred to the U.S. District
Court by Flynn Burner Corp. of New Rochelle, N.Y., one of the two defendants. Flynn Burner manufactured the allegedly faulty oven burner that had been installed at North Star two months before the fire, and it was serviced by a technician from Marshall W. Nelson & Associates of Milwaukee a half-hour before the blaze.
The defendants deny the allegations and are asking for a dismissal. Attorneys representing Flynn, in a response to the lawsuit, said North Star cannot establish that the burners caused the fire and resulting damages. They also contend the claims are barred because North Star was responsible for installing, inspecting, operating and maintaining the system, which was under North Star's exclusive control.
The attorneys for Marshall Nelson admit that the company performed certain service work in connection with the oven on the day of the fire, but they deny the company was negligent with regard to any advice or service.
Robert Gilbertson, one of the Minneapolis attorneys representing North Star, filed the complaint, saying the fire started in the ceiling above a highlighter oven equipped with burners recommended by Marshall Nelson and Flynn and serviced by Marshall Nelson.
The lawsuit said the burners were problematic almost from the day they were installed and that Marshall Nelson's post-sale advice and service "proved to be negligent and inadequate." It said that on the morning of the fire, a Marshall Nelson technician went to North Star's building to work on the burners and spent more than an hour inspecting them and making adjustments to the gas and flames.
"Very shortly after he left the building, North Star employees observed fire in the ceiling immediately above the highlighter oven on which he had been working,'' the complaint said.
The fire destroyed the 84,000-square-foot meat processing facility in St. Charles, the city's largest private employer. North Star served national customers such as ConAgra, Tyson, Butterball, Hormel and Costco.
The complaint said that for several years North Star used the highlighter oven to give the outside of certain products an "oven-roasted" look.
North Star experienced problems with the burners. The complaint said Marshall Nelson recommended a different type of burner, which North Star bought and installed. After the installation, North Star had more problems. In late 2008 and early 2009, Marshall Nelson recommended a new type of burner manufactured by Flynn, the complaint said. North Star installed the Flynn burners about two months before the fire.
The complaint said North Star had numerous problems with the new Flynn burners and contacted Marshall Nelson for help.
The complaint said that as a direct result of the fire, North Star suffered property damage and business loss exceeding $55 million.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Franklin Noel has scheduled a pretrial conference for Sept. 17 in his chambers in Minneapolis.
postbulletin.com
Source: newsroom - meattradenewsdaily.co.uk
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