This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Billings, Mont. • A third lawsuit has been filed by property owners alleging damages from an Exxon Mobil Corp. oil spill that dumped an estimated 63,000 gallons of crude into the Yellowstone River.

The suit alleges company personnel ignored warnings that Exxon's Silvertip pipeline was at risk of failure, and later took too long to shut it down after it broke beneath the flooding river on July 1, 2011.

The Billings Gazette reports that the plaintiffs are three Yellowstone County residents whose efforts to reach a settlement with the company failed.

The lawsuit was filed in state District Court in Yellowstone County on June 28. Two suits against Exxon were previously filed by other property owners.