The family of 55-year-old Judith “Judy” Lopez-Moran has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Pennsylvania chocolate factory R.M. Palmer Company. Lopez-Moran was one of seven people who died after an explosion caused a fire to erupt through the facility, killing workers and injuring dozens of others. The blaze also caused a building in the factory area to be leveled along with damage to several other buildings in the small town of West Reading.

The wrongful death suit accuses the company of negligence because it ignored signs of a natural gas leak. Also named in the lawsuit is the gas utility UGI. Officials have since reported that the explosion was the result of a natural gas leak; however, the investigation is still pending.

The March 24 explosion happened hours after workers complained that they smelled a “natural gas” odor in the building. After workers contacted officials in the company, they say that the company owners “did nothing” and instead required the concerned employees to continue operations.

The lawsuit shares that “the gas leak at the factory and the horrific explosion it caused was foreseeable, predictable, and preventable,” adding, “Tragically, Judith Lopez-Moran’s death and suffering were preventable.”

According to federal state officials, a nearby natural gas pipeline is being investigated into whether or not it played a role in the blast. While authorities are still investigating the cause, the National Transportation Safety Board has determined that the fire was caused by natural gas, though it’s not been determined where the gas came from. The lawsuit accuses the chocolate company of being alerted about the possible leak but instead of company officials evacuating the building, they instead “made a representation to the factory workers, including Judith Lopez-Moran, that the factory was safe and that there was no gas leak.”

In misleading the factory workers, the company was attempting to maximize profits by trying to minimize downtime in the factory, according to the lawsuit.

Aside from sending condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, the company has been tightlipped about its responsibility and negligence on the day of the blast.

According to the family’s lawyer, the law firm will investigate whether UGI’s meters had indicated there was a leak in the pipeline and whether soil around the pipeline was discolored, an indication that a leak was present. The family's lawyer, Andrew Duffy, shared “We hope to use the lawsuit to find out exactly what our family wants us to find out, which is what happened, who should be held accountable, and most important to them, how to prevent this from happening to any other family ever again.”

The lawsuit is not the first to come out because of the explosion, and it will likely not be the last. Just two days after the blast, a neighbor who lived next to the chocolate factory filed a negligence lawsuit accusing the company that she suffered injuries as well. Betty Wright claims that she was in her home when the explosion happened and that she was "lifted from her feet and blown across the room causing severe and permanent injuries." According to her complaint, Wright suffered substantial injuries to her leg, cervical, lumbar, and hip. Her complaint is seeking damages for both property loss and pain and suffering.