Important Facts about Texas Fertilizer Blast May Be Sealed in Lawsuits

Valuable health and safety information about the 2013 fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, could be hidden from the public forever because a judge has approved confidentiality agreements for more than a dozen lawsuits relating to the case.

The agreements OK’d by state District Judge Jim Meyer were requested by attorneys involved in at least 15 separate lawsuits. The result is that lawyers can label as confidential virtually all information uncovered as they prepare for trial.

The Dallas Morning News reports the information could include more details about injuries and safety testing of the fertilizer that exploded at the West Fertilizer Co. in April 2013.

Fifteen people were killed in the blast and hundreds injured.

Legal scholars note that taxpayers cover the cost for the courts in which lawsuits are tried, which means the information should be public.