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By DAVID WEISS dweiss@leader.net
Saturday, January 29, 2000 Page: 3A
WILKES-BARRE – A Kingston family has filed a lawsuit allegedly that a gas
station employee filled the family’s kerosene container with gas, causing
their kerosene heater to explode.
George and Valerie Beecroft and their children filed a lawsuit Friday
alleging that the action caused a fire that injured George Beecroft, burned
his North Sprague Avenue home, and caused smoke-related injuries to his wife
and two children.
The suit, filed in Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas, is against Domoco
Gas and Oil Co., doing business as BP Gas Station on Market Street in
Kingston, and employee Todd Montigney, Swoyersville.
The Beecrofts claim they asked Montigney on Feb. 7, 1998, to put $5 worth
of kerosene into a container.
According to the suit:
George Beecroft told Montigney that the container, which was located in the
back of Beecroft’s vehicle, was blue in color and had the word kerosene on the
side.
But Montigney filled the container with gasoline instead of kerosene.
The following day, George Beecroft refilled a space heater from the
container that Montigney had filled. The gasoline ignited and exploded.
The explosion caused a fire that injured George Beecroft, burned his home,
and caused smoke-related injuries to his wife and two children.
Call Weiss at 829-7242.