Clairton Woman Files Class Action Lawsuit Against U.S. Steel

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CLAIRTON (KDKA) -- A woman in this neighborhood of Maple and Main in East Pittsburgh has filed an 18-page class action lawsuit against U.S. Steel Corporation as a result of the Clairton Coke Works fire on December 24th.

Through her attorneys in Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Madison, Linda Hernandez seeks to represent residents in 22 Mon Valley communities whose air was compromised by that fire.

The lawsuit charges three counts: negligence for failing to prevent the fire or develop backup plans to prevent the release of noxious fumes into the air; unintentional private nuisance for creating conditions that were offensive, annoying, and intolerable; and intentional private nuisance for intentionally operating the coke works before desulfurization pollution controls had been restored.

The local East Pittsburgh resident who filed the lawsuit against U.S. Steel would not comment on camera, but her complaint alleges that toxic air, pollution, from U.S. Steel mills in this area, especially after the Christmas Eve fire at the Clairton Coke Works made her sick.

As a result of the fire and U.S. Steel's actions, the complaint alleges that the plaintiff and presumably others in the Mon Valley experienced "offensive odors, breathing problems, burning eyes, nose and throat, disrupted sleep, anxiety, and the repeated public warnings alarmed class-area residents and caused them to shutter inside their homes."

Not all residents feel their air was polluted.

"We don't get that here. We have nice clean air here. We're going to keep it that way," said Mary Christ of East Pittsburgh.

The suit still needs to be certified as a class action, and those with health issues like Hernandez can share them with the attorneys.