Texas Cities Gas Co. v. Dickens
| Decision Date | 19 October 1939 |
| Docket Number | No. 2171.,2171. |
| Citation | 133 S.W.2d 810 |
| Parties | TEXAS CITIES GAS CO. et al. v. DICKENS et al. |
| Court | Texas Court of Appeals |
Appeal from District Court, Seventy-Fourth District, McLennan County; Giles P. Lester, Judge.
Action by N. P. Dickens against the Texas Cities Gas Company, the Lone Star Gas Company, The First National Bank of Waco, Tex., and the Waco Land Trust and others, to recover damages for personal injuries. The Texas Cities Gas Company and the Lone Star Gas Company by way of cross-action sought to recover against the Bank and Land Trust common law indemnity, contractual indemnity and statutory contribution. The First National Bank and the Waco Land Trust by way of cross-action sought to recover common law indemnity and statutory contribution from the Gas Company. A motion by the bank and land trust to sever the suit of N. P. Dickens against the Gas Company from the suit of N. P. Dickens against the Bank and Land Trust and the cross-action of the Gas Company against the Bank and Land Trust was granted. A judgment was then entered in the severed cause in favor of the Bank and Land Trust, and the Texas Cities Gas, Company and others appeal.
Appeal dismissed.
Darden, Burleson & Wilson, of Waco, for appellants.
John McGlasson, Eugene McGlasson, Sleeper, Boynton & Kendall, and Richey, Sheehy & Teeling, all of Waco, for appellees.
This is a suit to recover damages for personal injuries alleged to have been received by N. P. Dickens as the result of the negligence of Texas Cities Gas Company, Lone Star Gas Company, The First National Bank of Waco, Texas, and Waco Land Trust and its trustees, E. A. Flowers, T. B. Brazelton and W. B. Dossett. Plaintiff N. P. Dickens alleged that a two inch gas line in the tunnel under the annex to the Liberty Building sprung a leak or became separated at its coupling and gas therefrom flowed into and accumulated in the basement of the Liberty Building; that such gas was caused to explode and produce a tremendous fire; that he was a fireman on duty on October 4, 1936, and that he, while in the performance of his duties, received certain personal injuries from an explosion of gas occurring while he was fighting the fire in the Liberty Building and annex; that The First National Bank of Waco and Waco Land Trust were the owners and operators of the Liberty Building and annex on October 4, 1936; that Texas Cities Gas Company in 1929 furnished the material and installed the pipes and equipment necessary for supplying the building with gas; that Lone Star Gas Company furnished gas to Texas Cities Gas Company; that Lone Star Gas Company and Texas Cities Gas Company increased the gas pressure in the gas lines of Texas Cities Gas Company a few days prior to the 4th day of October, 1936; that The First National Bank of Waco and Waco Land Trust were guilty of negligence (1) in placing Warren Moore in charge of the boiler room and tunnel; (2) in not inspecting the gas pipes and connections from time to time to see that they were in good condition and free from leaks; and (3) in turning off the switch, while acting through their servant, Warren Moore, thereby producing the spark that caused the gas accumulated in the basement of the building to explode at a time when such servant knew or should have known that gas was escaping and accumulating in the basement; and Texas Cities Gas Company was guilty of negligence (1) in the manner in which it caused the gas lines to be installed in the Liberty Building and annex; (2) in allowing gas to be distributed in defective and weak lines; (3) in not causing an inspection to be made of its gas lines; (4) in causing and in allowing high pressure to be placed in its intermediate lines in and adjacent to the Liberty Building and its annex; (5) in not cutting off the gas immediately after the explosion; (6) in allowing gas to flow into the building while the fire was raging in the basement of the building; (7) in causing an unusual and excessive gas pressure to be built up in its gas lines in and adjacent to the Liberty Building and annex; (8) in installing a Hammond coupler in the gas line in the tunnel under the annex without anchoring and bracing the line so that it would not vibrate and separate regardless of the pressure that might be placed in the line; and (9) in failing to paint the line in the tunnel so that an inspection would reveal any slipping or separating of the joint; that Lone Star Gas Company was guilty of negligence in causing high pressure to be built up in the distributing lines of the Texas Cities Gas Company in the city of Waco at a time when it knew the distributing system of the Texas Cities Gas Company was old, defective and worn; that the acts and omissions of the Texas Cities Gas Company, Lone Star Gas Company, The First National Bank of Waco, Texas, and Waco Land Trust concurred in producing the explosion that resulted in the injuries received by plaintiff and that such concurring acts and omissions of the defendants proximately caused the injuries and damages received by plaintiff.
The defendants Texas Cities Gas Company and Lone Star Gas Company answered and plead general demurrer, special exceptions and general denial and certain acts and omissions on the part of Dickens as contributory negligence and certain acts and omissions on the part of the Bank and Land Trust as sole proximate cause, and by way of cross-action sought to recover against the Bank and Land Trust common law indemnity, contractual indemnity and statutory contribution. The Bank and Land Trust answered and plead general demurrer, special exceptions, general denial, contributory negligence on the part of Dickens, and certain acts and omissions on the part of the Gas Companies as sole proximate cause, and by way of cross-action sought to recover common law indemnity and statutory contribution from the Gas Companies.
The case was tried before the court and a jury. Upon the conclusion of the hearing of the evidence the Bank and Land Trust moved the court to peremptorily instruct the jury to return a verdict in favor of the Bank and Land Trust against N. P. Dickens and against the Gas Companies on their cross-action. The Gas Companies also moved the court to peremptorily instruct the jury to return a verdict in their favor and against N. P. Dickens. The trial court instructed a verdict in favor of the...
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