A recent article in The Boston Globe highlights some developments with the Danversport Trust, started on June 1, 2007 when it was approved by Judge John Casey. The trust has been established as a means for those who were effected by the November 2006 warehouse explosion  (occupied by CAI, Inc. and Arnel Co.) to “negotiate a group settlement against any party found responsible.” The explosion caused over $20 million in damage and displaced many families whose homes were either severely damaged or destroyed.

So far, authorities have not found either CAI or Arnel responsible for the explosion. According to officials, the explosion was most likely caused by the ignition of chemical vapors from an unknown source. Final reports have not yet been made available. Some members of the community, however, are planning to band together and hire their own team of experts to find out what really happened. One possibility is the presence of natural gas in the building structure; however, there is not yet any evidence of that.

Jan Schlichtmann, the attorney representing The Danversport Trust, says that once findings are released concerning the cause of the explosion the trust will then have a better idea of who to approach regarding settlement negotiations. “If a settlement is reached, the money would be paid into the trust” and the beneficiaries of that trust would be the property owners whose property was effected by the explosion. The trust is also accepting private donations which, thus far, exceed $7,000. Based upon the needs of each beneficiary (so far there are over 200, including minor children), the money in the trust will be distributed under a benefits plan, with some money also being used “for the long-term improvement of Danversport.”

While some property owners have already reached monetary settlements with their insurance companies, a great number of them have yet to return to their homes and businesses. Out of 70 homes and businesses that were severely damaged or destroyed by the explosion, more than half of them are still being repaired and/or rebuilt.

The Boston Globe: “Victims form trust for settlement”