A mass tort is a civil action involving numerous plaintiffs against one or a few corporate defendants. The tort may involve, for example, personal injuries suffered by numerous plaintiffs as a result of a defective product, or a mass disaster in which there were many injured persons, such as an airplane crash, or exposure of a large group of people to toxic chemicals or pharmaceuticals.
Purgitsville is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. According to the 2000 census, the Purgitsville community has a population of 813. Purgitsville is located on U.S. Highway 220/West Virginia Route 28 at its intersection with Huffman Road (West Virginia Secondary Route 220/3) south of Junction. An elementary school, Mill Creek Elementary, was open here until 1993 when it was consolidated with Romney Elementary. Purgitsville began as a small farming and trading village in the early 19th century. In 1863, McNeill's Rangers were ambushed near the village by the Ringgold Cavalry, a Union force, but escaped with no fatalities.