Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

Companies that may or may not have had anything to do with the devastating fire that destroyed Building No. 2 of the New Pig Corp. in Tipton on Halloween night will have the opportunity to observe the site, snap photographs and ensure the area is prepared correctly for when inspectors arrive to try and determine what caused the multi-million dollar blaze.
Blair County Judge Daniel Milliron this week dictated the order which will allow several companies, all who New Pig claim could be held liable for the fire, to examine and photograph the site on Jan. 2-3. Soon thereafter, the remains of the building will be leveled and New Pig can then begin re-building.
The court arguments began last week when Phillips Electronics North America Corp. asked Judge Milliron for an injunction, barring New Pig from initiating demolition exercises at the site. The demolition, which was originally to begin Dec. 23, was halted until Phillips and New Pig could provide the court with proposed work schedules so the company would not lose revenue in the time in between.
According to New Pig officials, the company is spending about $15,000 each day to store products off-site.
Phillips claimed that if demolition would have begun on Monday, there was no way the company could gather their own investigators and get them to the site in time. Phillips wanted representatives there to document the demolition and come to their own conclusions concerning the origin of the fire.
New Pig is claiming that a light, produced by Phillips, may have exploded and caused the blaze, which gutted the entire building. The building not only contained valuable product storage, but also contained the customer service department and other essential departments of the company.
According to Milliron’s order, the investigation into the cause of the fire will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Jan. 6.

By Rick