Civil Suit Filed Over Oklahoma Work Site Explosion

A man injured in an explosion at an Elk City, Okla., work site has filed a civil lawsuit over the Aug. 11 blast.

The lawsuit filed by Daven Collins claims that Great Plains Oilfield Rental was negligent in installing and servicing equipment at the Hodges Trucking yard in Elk City.

Daven Collins was injured while he and other employees were mixing crude oil with a byproduct called condensate. Authorities tell The Journal Record that a mixing pump failed, causing a spark that ignited the explosion.

Collins suffered serious burns. He and his wife are seeking more than $75,000 in damages.

Both Great Plains and Hodges Trucking are subsidiaries of Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. A spokesman for Chesapeake declined to comment on the suit.