Mathias is an unincorporated community along the Lost River in Hardy County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Mathias lies off West Virginia Route 259. Before the consolidated school of East Hardy High School at Baker, Mathias had its own educational facility, Mathias School, which served grades Kindergarten through twelfth. Mathias has one bank (Summit Community Bank), two restaurants, a post office, one community center, car wash, laundromat, one gas station, a strip club (Paradise City), as well as Lost River State Park. It was founded by John Mathias. At one point it was also home to a mechanic's shop, which exploded due to a gas pipe failure. The explosion was a result of the failure a one-inch rural field tap, which forced gas to migrate to the neighboring building, the Mathias Garage. The resulting explosion injured 5 individuals as noted in CASE NO. 07- 15 8 1 -GT-PC, as reviewed by the WV Public Services Commission. The wreckage and debris are still there, along SR 259 across the historic Mathias Home and Community Center Property. Those in search of Prickly Pear Cactus will find them along the shale cliff located across SR 259 from the debris pile.

What is toxic tort law?

Toxic Tort cases involve people who have been injured through exposure to dangerous pharmaceuticals or chemical substances in the environment, on the job, or in consumer products -- including carcinogenic agents, lead, benzene, silica, harmful solvents, hazardous waste, and pesticides to name a few.

Most toxic tort cases have arisen either from exposure to pharmaceutical drugs or occupational exposures. Most pharmaceutical toxic injury cases are mass tort cases, because drugs are consumed by thousands of people, many of whom become ill from a toxic drug. There have also been many occupational toxic tort cases, because industrial and other workers are often chronically exposed to toxic chemicals - more so than consumers and residents. Most of the law in this area arises from asbestos exposure, but thousands of toxic chemicals are used in industry and workers in these areas can experience a variety of toxic injuries. Unlike the general population, which is exposed to trace amounts of thousands of different chemicals in the environment, industrial workers are regularly exposed to much higher levels of chemicals and therefore have a greater risk of developing disease from particular chemical exposures than the general population. The home has recently become the subject of toxic tort litigation, mostly due to mold contamination, but also due to construction materials such as formaldehyde-treated wood and carpet. Toxic tort cases also arise when people are exposed to consumer products such as pesticides and suffer injury. Lastly, people can also be injured from environmental toxins in the air or in drinking water.

Answers to toxic tort law issues in West Virginia

In certain kinds of cases, lawyers charge what is called a contingency fee. Instead of billing by the hour, the...

Because of the health problems caused by lead poisoning, the federal Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction...

Property owners may be liable for tenant health problems caused by exposure to environmental hazards, such as...

In general, mass tort cases involve a large number of individual claimants with claims associated with a single...