Victims of deadly Silver Spring apartment explosion to file lawsuits

SILVER SPRING, Md. - An organization that helps immigrant communities announced that a lawsuit will be filed on behalf of victims of an apartment explosion that left several dead and dozens injured in Montgomery County.

Representatives from CASA joined survivors at the Flower Branch Apartments in Silver Spring to announce the lawsuit Wednesday. A spokesman said that the group will work with two law firms to make sure the victims and their families are justly compensated for their losses and to help better protect their community.

A woman who escaped the explosion with her husband and family also spoke at the press conference. Through an interpreter, she said that her claims of noticing an odor of gas in her apartment in the days following the explosion were ignored.

The explosion happened in the early morning hours of August 11 at the complex on Piney Branch Road. Seven people were killed and more than 30 others were hospitalized. Nearly 100 families were displaced as a result of the explosion.