Supreme Court calls for trial in coop explosion

The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled there should be a trial to determine if a co-op bears some responsibility for a 1999 explosion that killed seven people and injured six others in southern Iowa.On September 6th, 1999, a propane gas explosion leveled Jerry Usovsky’s home in Richland where family and friends had gathered to celebrate Labor Day. The survivors and the executors of the estates of those who died filed lawsuits charging several defendants were negligent and liable. Several defendants settled out of court; others had their cases dismissed, but a district court ruled the Keota coop was insulated from liability. The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled a trial is necessary to determine whether the business — not its farmer-members as individuals — can be held liable in the case.