Products Liability Law Reporter

Creason v. Williams Bros. Constr. Co., No. 2016 L 000020 (Ill. Cir. Ct. Sangamon Cnty. Sept. 30, 2019).

Roger Creason, 42, was a union laborer employed by Henderson Brothers Co., a subcontractor to Tobin Brothers, Inc., which was a plumbing subcontractor to Williams Brothers Construction Co., the general contractor for a construction project at a wastewater treatment plant in Springfield, Ill. A Tobin Brothers employee directed Creason to accompany another Tobin employee, plumber Joshua Prasun, down into a 54-inch-diameter pipe and observe the manner in which Prasun was conducting joint testing.

Prasun demonstrated how to use the Plug-It Products joint testing machine, watched Creason operate the machine, and then left Creason, who continued with the joint testing process. While Creason was inflating the joint tester’s reinforced rubber bladder or pressurizing the test cavity, the bladder exploded, causing the joint tester to rotate. The blast wave and part of the test equipment struck Creason’s head and arm, causing blunt trauma injuries. He died several days later. Creason had been earning $48 per hour and is survived by his wife and two teenage daughters. His medical expenses were more than $213,200.

Creason’s wife, on behalf of his estate, sued Plug-It Products Corp., which manufactured and leased the joint tester, alleging negligence and strict liability theories. The plaintiff alleged that: the defendant knew the bladder had a tendency to explode with tremendous force during use, causing injury and death to personnel; the adjustable test chamber air pressure regulator supplied with the joint tester was capable of supplying air pressure greatly exceeding the pressure marked on the bladder’s surface; the test chamber air system did not have a pressure relief valve; there was no means to prevent violent rotation of the joint tester within the pipe in the event of test cavity over-pressure or bladder rupture; the defendant failed to provide necessary instructions or warnings about the need for personnel to joint test from a safe location; and the defendant failed to perform any analysis or testing to determine such a safe distance.

The plaintiff discovered that four years before the incident that killed Creason, the defendant had added, on advice of defense counsel, extension hoses to the joint tester to enable personnel to operate the machine’s control panel at least 20 feet away, following another lawsuit arising out of a similar incident.

Suit also alleged that Williams Brothers had failed to provide a safe workplace by supervising Tobin Brothers and avoiding confined space tests in the pipe. The plaintiff also alleged that Tobin Brothers had negligently assigned Creason, a laborer, to operate the joint tester—a job generally performed by plumbers—without any training or experience.

Finally, the plaintiff claimed that Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc., a consulting engineering firm, failed to provide a safe workplace for subcontractors.

The parties settled for more than $5.5 million. Plug-It Products contributed $3.4 million; Tobin Brothers and Williams Brothers paid $2.1 million; and Crawford, Murphy & Tilly paid the rest.

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member Edward G. Willer, Chicago.

Plaintiff experts: Scott Leopold, structural engineering, Buffalo Grove, Ill.; William Keefe, mechanical engineering, Lake Zurich, Ill.; and David Gibson, economics, Glen Ellyn, Ill.

Defense experts: Paul Gantt, structural engineering, San Ramon, Calif.; Adam Forest, mechanical engineering, Maryland Heights, Mo.; Thomas Bandura, construction safety, Lisle, Ill.; Gary Skoog, economics, Glenview, Ill.; Timothy Kobernat, construction safety, Eau Claire, Wis.