The plaintiffs’ attorneys said the case marks one of the highest number of individual wrongful death and personal injury claims ever brought in a single product liability lawsuit stemming from one incident.
In addition to Whirlpool, based in Benton Harbor, Michigan, the suit names as defendants cladding supplier Arconic Inc , headquartered in Pittsburgh, and insulation maker Celotex Corp, a US subsidiary of French multinational Saint-Gobain, based outside Philadelphia. Fire safety experts found that the blaze started on the fourth floor of the 24-floor building on June 14, 2017, ignited the exterior cladding and raced up the structure’s facade to the top floor within half an hour.