Phoenix Assurance Co. v. Texas Holding Co.

252 P. 1082, 81 Cal. App. 61
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 26, 1927
DocketDocket No. 3124.
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 252 P. 1082 (Phoenix Assurance Co. v. Texas Holding Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Phoenix Assurance Co. v. Texas Holding Co., 252 P. 1082, 81 Cal. App. 61 (Cal. Ct. App. 1927).

Opinion

PLUMMER, J.

The period given for the filing of additional briefs herein having expired and no additional briefs having been filed, it is assumed that the parties have elected to stand upon the briefs already on file.

During all the times mentioned herein, the defendant was in possession of and operating certain oil property situate at Huntington Beach, in the county of Orange. This property was located on Crystal Street between Summit and Garfield Streets. On the property was an oil well and certain tanks for the reception and storage of crude petroleum. For some time prior to the twenty-fourth day of February, 1923, the defendant had been producing crude petroleum and storing the same in the tanks just mentioned. These tanks were located in close proximity to Crystal Street. Crystal Street was a much-traveled public highway. On the twenty-fourth day of February, 1923, an explosion occurred on the premises occupied by the defendant and burning oil from *63 the tanks referred to was thrown over and upon Crystal Street and over and upon three automobile trucks, then and there being, belonging to the copartnership of Shaffer & Best, and destroying said trucks by fire. This action is for the value of said trucks. The insurance company paid the insurance policies on the trucks in question and took an assignment of the right of action against the defendant herein. Judgment was awarded plaintiffs and the defendant appeals.

The action is based upon the alleged negligent manner in which the defendant maintained its oil tanks and conducted its oil-producing operations. As stated, the oil tanks were maintained in close proximity to the public highway known as Crystal Street. The evidence set forth in" the transcript shows that manholes, or openings, were maintained in the tanks and that a boiler used in the operation of its pumping machinery was located approximately thirty feet from the nearest oil tank; that this boiler was so erected that the fires maintained thereunder would flash up along the rear end of said boiler from two to six feet.

The appellant alleges four grounds as reasons for reversal herein, to wit: Insufficiency of the evidence; erroneous rulings of the court in the rejection of evidence; erroneous instructions given to the jury and error in refusing instructions requested by the defendant. In support of the alleged insufficiency of the evidence, the appellant sets forth that there was an entire absence of any testimony showing that the tanks, appliances, equipment and other instrumentalities and methods of handling oil and gas by the defendant was negligent; that is, that no witness actually testified that the manner in which the defendant maintained its instrumentalities and conducted its business operations was negligent.

Before discussing this misconceived statement of what we think the law is, we will set forth the testimony bearing upon the issues involved. Before doing so, however, we will state that the testimony adduced was for the purpose of showing that crude oil, as taken from the wells and stored in tanks generates inflammable gases; that this gas in foggy weather will drop to the ground and move along the ground with the wind, if any is blowing, in the same direction with' the wind; that at the time in question there was a rather brisk wind blowing from the direction in which the tanks *64 were situated toward the place where the furnace and boiler herein mentioned were maintained and that this wind moved the gases along from one of the tanks to the furnace where it was ignited by the exposed blaze of the fire under the boiler. With this in view, we will quote from the transcript, which we think amply justifies the conclusion reached by the jury and the trial court.

J. W. Hankins, a witness called for the plaintiffs, testified: The storage tanks were located upon the property of the Texas Holding Company; they were in the northeast corner about four feet apart; the tanks were about six feet from Crystal Street; the tanks were of about twelve hundred barrels capacity; they were about fifteen feet tall and twelve feet across.

H. G. Best, a witness called for the plaintiffs, testified as to the location of the tanks and placed them at about six or eight feet from the line of Crystal Street.

George Shaffer, a witness called for the plaintiffs, testified as to the location of the tanks and as to the burning of the trucks, locating the tanks about the same distance from Crystal Street and the trucks in the street a short distance from the tanks.

The witness Albert testified that there was heavy traffic on Crystal Street. The witness Hankins further testified that there was oil on fire in the tanks; that one of the tanks was full when the fire started; that the south tank was about two-thirds full; after the fire there was some oil left in the tanks; after the fire there was nothing left of the trucks, except junk, iron and ashes; that there was a manhole around the intake pipe of the tank; that they were not covered.

Eugene A. Whitten, an expert witness, testified that crude petroleum gives off gas shortly after being taken from the well.

L. N. Shaffer, a witness called for the plaintiffs, testified that the fire was burning in the open furnace about thirty feet from the nearest uncovered storage tank; that he saw fire burning in the vicinity of the tanks immediately before the explosion; that he saw the fire burning under the boiler; it was coming out at the back end of the boiler. The fire came out around the boiler and out of the back end of it, as it was not bricked up over the back end. It was *65 open; an open-end boiler, so to speak; that there was a sump ten or fifteen feet distant.

The witness Ashburn testified that the boiler was not bricked up; it was what you would call a tubular boiler bricked up around the outer edge and half way up on the back was open; that the flames would jump up four to six feet out of the back of the boiler.

The witness Hankins further testified that he would approximate the distance between the furnace and the nearest tank at about thirty to forty feet; that the boiler was used for making steam and that the back end of the boiler was open; that every once in a while the flames would shoot up from two to six feet high.

The witness Height testified that the fire was coming out of the back of the boiler “and going approximately three or four feet high.

The witness Best testified that there was a fire under the boiler at the time of the explosion and also as to the fire blowing out the end of the boiler.

The witness Hankins, on cross-examination, testified that gas would travel with the wind, never against the wind; that there was a good stiff breeze at the time of the explosion; that the wind was blowing directly from the south; that oil freshly produced gives off gas.

W. T. Wallace, a witness called for the plaintiffs, testified that he noticed the direction in which the wind was blowing at the time in question. It was from the southeast to the northwest; that the wind was blowing from eight to twelve miles per hour.

George Shaffer, a witness for the plaintiffs, testified that natural gas was permeating the atmosphere all around the premises in question; that there was some fog.

Eugene A.

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Bluebook (online)
252 P. 1082, 81 Cal. App. 61, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/phoenix-assurance-co-v-texas-holding-co-calctapp-1927.