Bowling v. Citgo Petroleum Corp.

• Decision Date: 28 November 2018
• Docket Number: consolidated with CA 18-170, CA 18-172, CA 18-179,CA 18-169 , CA 18-175, CA 18-171, CA 18-174, CA 18-173, CA 18-176
• Citation: Bowling v. Citgo Petroleum Corp., 261 So.3d 1014 (La. App. 2018)
• Parties: Patrick BOWLING, et al. v. CITGO PETROLEUM CORPORATION, et al.
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US

261 So.3d 1014

Patrick BOWLING, et al.

v.CITGO PETROLEUM CORPORATION, et al.

CA 18-169

consolidated with CA 18-170

CA 18-171

CA 18-172

CA 18-173

CA 18-174

CA 18-175

CA 18-176

CA 18-179

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

November 28, 2018

Robert E. Landry, Patrick D. Gallaugher, Kevin P. Fontenot, Scofield, Gerard, Pohorelsky, Gallaugher & Landry, 901 Lakeshore Drive, Suite 900, Lake Charles, LA 70601, (337) 433-9436, COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT-APPELLANT: Citgo Petroleum Corporation

Craig Isenberg, Kyle W. Siegel, Joshua O. Cox, Barrasso Usdin Kupperman Freeman & Sarver, LLC, 909 Poydras, 24^th Floor, New Orleans, LA 70112, (504) 589-9700, COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANTAPPELLANT: Citgo Petroleum Corporation

Wells T. Watson, Jake D. Buford, Baggett, McCall, Burgess, Watson & Gaughan, P.O. Drawer 7820, Lake Charles, LA 70606-7820, (337) 478-8888, COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFFS-APPELLEES: Alton Young, Sammy Timpa, Corey Spikes, Robert Paggen, Patrick Bowling, Larry Martin, Michael Colletta, Terryl Lambright, Michael Crewell, Zachary Forsyth, Dustin Daigle, Chris Judice, Stephen L'Hoste, Richard McCoy

Richard Elliott Wilson, Somer G. Brown, Cox, Cox, Filo, Camel & Wilson, LLC, 723 Broad Street, Lake Charles, LA 70601, (337) 436-6611, COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFFS-APPELLEES: Michael Crewell, Dustin Daigle, Chris Judice, Michael Colletta, Terryl Lambright, Patrick Bowling, Larry Martin, Stephen L'Hoste, Richard McCoy, Robert Paggen, Corey Spikes, Sammy Timpa, Zachary Forsyth, Alton Young

Court composed of Sylvia R. Cooks, John D. Saunders, and Elizabeth A. Pickett, Judges.

COOKS, Judge.

These appeals involve nine cases consolidated for trial, involving twenty-six individual plaintiffs.Defendant, CITGO Petroleum Corporation(CITGO), appeals the judgment of the trial court awarding damages to twenty-four plaintiffs impacted by CITGO's negligent release of slop oil into adjacent waterways and the air release of sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

The facts giving rise to these lawsuits have been the subject of several appeals before this court and the Louisiana Supreme Court.SeeArabie v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 10-2605(La.3/13/12), 89 So.3d 307( Arabie I );Arabie v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 15-324(La.App. 3 Cir.10/7/15), 175 So.3d 1180, writ denied , 15-2040 (La.1/8/16), 184 So.3d 694( Arabie II );Cormier v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 17-104(La.App. 3 Cir.10/4/17), 228 So.3d 770, writ denied , 17-2138 (La.2/9/18), 237 So.3d 491;Bradford v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 17-296(La.App. 3 Cir.1/10/18), 237 So.3d 648, writ denied , 18-272 (La.5/11/18), 241 So.3d 314;Albarado v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 17-823(La.App. 3 Cir.5/16/18), 247 So.3d 818;Fontenot v. CITGO Petroleum Corp. , 17-924, 17-925(La.App. 3 Cir.5/23/18), 247 So.3d 837.In Bradford , 237 So.3d at 657-58, this court set out the operative facts as follows:

On June 19, 2006, following a local flash flood, CITGO's Calcasieu Parish Refinery released four million gallons of slop oil and seventeen million gallons of wastewater into the Calcasieu River, contaminating over 100 miles of coastline with toxic liquids and mousse-like substances that emitted toxic fumes in addition to being toxic upon contact.The spill was the result of the failure and overflow of CITGO's closed-system, wastewater treatment unit.The overflow was described as a catastrophic event and an environmental disaster by CITGO's own representatives.The clean-up of the spill lasted for approximately six months, from June to December, 2006.

CITGO's Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) on slop oil from March 2006 ranks it as a chronic health and fire hazard.The MSDS states that the oil is extremely flammable and poisonous, and it contains Hydrogen Sulfide (H sub2 S) gas which may be fatal if inhaled.It can enter the lungs and cause damage.It is harmful or fatal if swallowed.Slop oil contains above di minimus levels of benzene, a known cancer hazard which can cause leukemia and other blood disorders, H sub2 S, xylene, toluene, n-hexane, and ethylbenzene.Benzene, toluene, and xylene are volatile organic compounds (VOCs).VOCs are chemicals that evaporate from a solid or liquid form at room temperature; long-term exposure can cause damage to the liver, kidneys, and central nervous system; short-term exposure can cause eye and respiratory tract irritation, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders, fatigue, loss of coordination, allergic skin reactions, nausea, and memory impairment.Pursuant to CITGO's MSDS, slop oil also contains hexane, heptane, octanes, nonane, and trimethylbenzenes.Slop oil and/or its components are listed on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) inventory.

Also on June 19, 2006, CITGO's steam lines became submerged and the facility released H sub2 S and sulfur dioxide (S02) from sixty stacks in illegal concentrations for a full day, approximately twelve hours.The wind was blowing from the southeast toward the north and northwest, then calming for parts of the day, allowing the toxic emissions to release into the surrounding community.

CITGO stipulated to fault for causing both the release of the slop oil and the air release of sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide.These nine consolidated cases proceeded to trial on the issue of causation and any amount of damages due for each of the twenty-six plaintiffs' symptoms as a result of exposure to either slop oil, the air release, or both.In all of the cases, a jury trial was waived and the damages of each plaintiff was limited to $50,000.00.

In docket number 18-169, the plaintiffs, Patrick Bowling, Michael Colletta, Michael Crewell,¹Dustin Daigle, Zachary Forsyth, Chris Judice, Terryl Lambright, Stephen L'Hoste, Larry Martin, Richard McCoy, Robert Paggen, Corey Spikes, Sammy Timba, and Alton Young, were employees of Phoenix Electric working at the Calcasieu Refinery where they allege they were exposed to slop oil released by CITGO.In docket number 18-170, Donald Mouton and Ebony (Mouton) Jack claim they were cutting grass in the Carlyss area when they were exposed to the chemicals from the air release from the CITGO refinery.In docket number 18-171, Odelia Dowling² claims she was exposed to toxins when she delivered lunch to her daughter's fiancée at CITGO on June 20, 2006.In docket number 18-172, Ricky Matthews claims he was exposed to slop oil while at a family event on June 20, 2016, at the I-210 beach on the Calcasieu River north of the CITGO facility.In docket number 18-173, Leslie Mouton claims she was exposed to the air release when she took lunch to her nephew at Colonial Pipeline Company.In docket number 18-174, John Thibodeaux claims he was exposed to the air release while visiting friends at an apartment on Cities Service Highway in Sulphur.In docket number 18-175, Yvonne Glasgo claims she was exposed to slop oil while at the same I-210 beach Ricky Matthews was at on June 20, 2006.In docket number 18-176, Ellis Jack Jr. claims he was exposed to toxins released by CITGO while fishing in Calcasieu Lake on some unspecified date.In docket number 18-179, Albert Doucet Jr., Debra McZeal, Tommy Mumford, and John Smith claim they were exposed to toxins released by CITGO while working at the Louisiana Pigment Company in Sulphur, Louisiana.

Following the trial, the trial court determined that each of the twenty-six plaintiffs had been exposed to the slop oil, to the chemicals from the air release, or to both.The trial court awarded damages in four categories.The trial court awarded medical expenses associated with the exposure, and three categories of general damages: pain and suffering, fear of developing future disease, and loss of enjoyment of life.The damages awarded to each plaintiff are set forth as follows:

 Fear of Loss of
                Plaintiff Medical Pain and developing enjoyment of Total
                expenses suffering disease life
                Patrick Bowling         $ 350.00     $ 28,000.00     $        -      $ 10,000.00      $ 38,350.00
                Michael Colletta        $ 350.00     $ 21,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 36,350.00
                Michael Crewell         $ 350.00     $ 25,000.00     $        -      $ 10,000.00      $ 35,350.00
                Dustin Daigle           $ 350.00     $  5,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  3,500.00      $ 18,850.00
                Zachary Forsyth         $ 350.00     $  4,500.00     $        -      $  3,000.00      $  7,850.00
                Chris Judice            $ 350.00     $ 13,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 28,350.00
                Terryl Lambright        $ 350.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  3,500.00      $ 23,850.00
                Stephen L'Hoste         $ 350.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 15,000.00     $ 12,500.00      $ 37,850.00
                Larry Martin            $ 416.00     $  7,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  4,000.00      $ 21,416.00
                Richard McCoy           $ 537.00     $ 28,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00      $ 48,537.00
                Robert Paggen           $ 350.00     $ 21,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 36,350.00
                Corey Spikes            $ 200.00     $  7,500.00     $ 10,000.00     $  3,500.00      $ 21,200.00
                Sammy Timpa             $ 350.00     $ 28,000.00     $ 15,000.00     $ 10,000.00      $ 53,350.00
                Alton Young             $ 350.00     $ 28,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00      $ 48,350.00
                Donald Mouton           $ 200.00     $  5,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  3,500.00      $ 18,700.00
                Ebony (Mouton) Jack     $ 200.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 25,200.00
                Odelia Dowling          $ 200.00     $  8,000.00     $        -      $  5,000.00      $ 13,200.00
                Ricky Matthews          $ 732.00     $ 25,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00      $ 45,732.00
                Leslie Mouton           $ 305.00     $ 10,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  3,500.00      $ 23,805.00
                John Thibodeaux         $ 200.00     $  8,000.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 23,200.00
                Yvonnie Glasgo          $ 425.00     $  8,500.00     $ 10,000.00     $  5,000.00      $ 23,925.00
                Ellis Jack, Jr.         $ 200.00     $ 15,000.00     $  7,500.00

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