Around a hundred people who were trapped on Highway 13 during last week's blizzard gathered Thursday night in a hotel ballroom to discuss the details of a new class-action lawsuit filed on their behalf.
It's the second one to have been filed.
Marlene Berman, the official applicant for the case, pointed out that at the information session, many of the people who were trapped couldn't attend, because they were working. On that note, she had some harsh words for how Mayor Coderre handled the fiasco as it was unfolding.
"Mayor Coderre tweeted at nine-thirty telling us all to stay home. We're the working-class people who make this city run, we pay his salary, and he just...dismissed us. I find it audacious," she told CJAD 800 News.
This lawsuit technically includes people who were stuck on other roads near the 13, though which roads are to be included has yet to be determined. Joey Zukran, the chief attorney for the case, told CJAD 800 News that he realized the story was "much bigger than initially thought" after he started hearing from people who had also been stuck for hours on the 520 East and service roads near both expressways.
Other people said that any financial compensation they might receive from the class-action suit is secondary. Emily Cox, who was trapped on her way to a soccer game from Laval, said she just hopes "nothing like this ever happens again."
A judge is considering both this case, filed by LPC Avocat, and another case, filed by Trudel, Johnston & Lesperance.