US Cladding Manufacturer Faces Wrongful Death, Products Liability Suit Over Grenfell Tower Fire

“It was all completely avoidable. It should never have happened.”

Those were the words of Grenfell Tower fire survivor Marcio Gomes — whose stillborn son was the youngest fatality in the 2017 tragedy in the UK — when it was announced that a wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against US companies, including the manufacturer of the residential building’s combustible cladding.

Filed on behalf of 69 of the people who died, as well as several others who were injured, the 143-count wrongful death and products liability complaint is demanding a jury trial in Philadelphia County against Arconic Inc and two related corporations for the Reynobond polyethylene cladding panels; Celotex Corporation for Celotex insulation; and Whirlpool Corporation for the Hotpoint brand fridge-freezer, a unit of which was previously cited as the origin of the blaze.