ST. LOUIS (AP) - A St. Louis County jury has awarded nearly $2 million to 11 homeowners who sued over a temporary stone bridge they blame for flooding their properties two years ago during a torrential rainstorm.
Jurors returned the verdict favoring the Ladue property owners last week after a twoweek trial. The jury awarded a total of $318,000 in actual damages, as well as $150,000 in punitive damages to each plaintiff.
The lawsuit claimed that the bridge built by a group of contractors across Deer Creek acted like a dam, causing the flooding.
An attorney for the contractors says the verdict will be appealed, arguing the flood was a natural disaster resulting from a remnant of Hurricane Ike that pummeled the area.
The bridge has been removed.