Massachusetts firm cited in deadly Connecticut energy plant blast pays minimum required fine

A company that was cited for 110 violations after a 2010 gas explosion that killed six workers at a Connecticut energy plant has paid only the minimum required fine for worker safety violations.

The Hartford Courant (http://cour.at/1xJPYR4 ) reported Saturday that Keystone Construction & Maintenance Services of Massachusetts made its first payment of $35,715 under a formula that set a minimum total payment of $250,000 in seven annual payments beginning last year.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration originally proposed $6.7 million in fines against Keystone in connection with the blast at Kleen Energy Plant in Middletown.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal says the minimum payment is a disservice to victims and is unfair to companies that are paying heftier fines.

A lawyer for Keystone has declined to comment.

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Information from: Hartford Courant, http://www.courant.com