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Fatal Lodge Blast Results In Possible Wrongful Death Suits By Families Of Victims

November 14, 2005

A Grand Junction lawyer has filed notices of intent to sue Delta County, the town of Paonia and the state of Colorado in the explosion of the Electric Mountain Lodge that killed three children and injured 16 other people last winter.

The attorney said he filed the notice on behalf of 17 members of the extended family headed by lodge owners Michael and Nancy Hughes 'to keep our options open' but suggested that the governments might be blamed for failing to regulate the forest getaway. 'Government historically has regulated hazardous materials, so was there a failure to regulate and would it have made a difference?' he said. 'There are additional facts that I don't want to try in the media.'

Investigators are trying to determine whether a lack of regulations or a failure to enforce regulations contributed to the deaths and injuries, Killian said. The fire burned the lodge to the ground in a blaze so hot that the children's bones appeared cremated, sheriff's investigators said in documents released in August. Two chimneys were all that were left standing. Investigators blamed the explosion on a propane leak within the building, which was above 9,000 feet on the Grand Mesa, 19 miles north of Paonia along a road that is not plowed in the winter. Firetrucks were unable to reach the burning lodge.

Many of the surviving members of the Hughes family, including Mike and Nancy, were injured in the March 19 explosion. Killed were Leslie Bilbrey, 12; Isaac Michael Watkins, 2, and Jamie Marie Reade, 16. In the hours and days before the explosion on a sunny winter Saturday afternoon, several guests had complained of an odor, according to sheriff's investigators. Some guests reported smelling propane. Others couldn't identify the odor, and the owners told customers who complained that it likely was mold on timbers in the crawl space, reports said. Mike Hughes told investigators that 'if he'd smelled propane, he never would leave his family in there,' according to a report written by Undersheriff Mark Taylor.

Delta County has no building codes, and talk of instituting codes or inspections over the years has ended many a campaign for local office. While the state of Colorado inspects boilers, or furnaces, it does not inspect propane, officials said. Propane companies are responsible for safely installing tanks and for pipe leading to the building. Once propane enters the building, however, the property owner is responsible for fittings and safe installation and operation, propane officials said.

Anyone contemplating a lawsuit against a governmental entity must serve notice of intent within 180 days, and not all notices lead to lawsuits. 'Our experts are investigating, and once completed, we'll make a determination,' the attorney said. 'I don't think Paonia will be involved, but I don't know yet. (Having) no building code works until somebody gets killed,' he said. 'I hope the people of Delta County can realize that no government is great, but there are consequences.'

A spokeswoman for the Delta County attorney said county officials had no comment. The town attorney for Paonia didn't return a call for comment, and Geoff Hier of the state Department of Regulatory Affairs said he hadn't seen the notice, so he could not comment.