| Two environmental cleanup volunteers injured in a MIT fraternity prank have settled a lawsuit for an undisclosed six-figure amount, according to their lawyer.
The volunteers were injured after an object they retrieved from the Charles River caused an explosion on their boat. The object was later identified as sodium, which explodes when exposed to water. MIT students have an annual tradition of dumping material from the college’s chemistry lab in the river to welcome the new year. Police discovered a You Tube video celebrating the sodium drop and a fraternity member Bhaskar Mookerji pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and environmental pollution. The volunteers subsequently sued the fraternity and the Tau Epsilon Pai fraternity, whose insurance carriers agreed to copmpensate the victims for their medical expenses and emotional trauma. Mookerji told the Boston Globe: “It was a very complicated legal situation and it was the best route for amicably resolving the affair. It gave closure for the people who got hurt, and it was the right thing to do.’ |