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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Family of factory worker who died in Helene flooding files wrongful
death suit against employer
By Andy Rose, CNN
Updated:
2:40 PM EDT, Wed October 16, 2024
Source: CNN
The East Tennessee company that saw at least five of its factory
workers from Hurricane Helene now faces a lawsuit from the family of
one victim asking for at least $25 million.
The wrongful death suit was filed Monday against Impact Plastics and
CEO Gerald O’Connor.
“Impact Plastics, led by Mr. O’Connor, chose greed over the safety
of its workers,” the complaint states. “The deaths caused by
Hurricane Helene’s flooding were not just tragic — they were
entirely preventable.”
The lawsuit was filed by the family of Johnny Peterson, who was working
at the factory September 27 shortly before the storm pushed the
Nolichucky River over its banks, turning the area around the factory
into rushing rapids. In all, 11 plant workers were swept away by the
floodwaters, and .
Peterson and four other employees were found dead after fleeing the
factory and being swept away.
One worker, Rosa Andrade, is still missing. “We are still actively
searching for her today,” Unicoi County Search and Rescue told CNN
via email Wednesday.
The lawsuit adds crucial new details to allegations about one of the
deadliest incidents in the storm that claimed , the deadliest hurricane
to strike the US mainland since Katrina in 2005.
“Impact Plastics was aware of the flood risks, and while employees
requested permission to leave, the company failed to act. We will hold
them accountable,” the plaintiff’s attorneys Litson PLLC said in a
statement.
into the circumstances of the deaths are being conducted by the
Tennessee Bureau of Investigations and the Tennessee Occupational
Safety and Health Administration. The state agencies have advised the
conclusion of those inquiries is likely months away.
O’Connor has only spoken publicly once about the tragedy, reading a
statement on video from an undisclosed location he said was necessary
because of death threats. “There was time to escape,” O’Connor
said. “Employees were not told at any time that they would be fired
if they left the plant.”
Dispute over whether workers could leave
According to the lawsuit, Peterson and other workers were “surprised
and upset” by a September 25 email with the subject line “Friday”
indicating they would be working on the day the storm arrived, even
though the area was under a flood watch and local public schools were
closed. The email said to “turn off your computers since the power
will be down over the weekend.”
The complaint alleges Impact Plastics did not brief workers on an
Emergency Action Plan despite being located in a flood plain and may
not have had a flood evacuation plan at all.
That Friday, the first shift began at 7:30 a.m. even as heavy rain was
already falling, the lawsuit states.
According to the lawsuit, emergency alerts were ringing on cell phones
at the factory throughout their shift that morning, as the National
Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency and urged people to move
to higher ground.
“Employees were instructed that the shift would proceed as usual,”
the complaint states, even as water was beginning to leak through the
roof.
Impact Plastics released a statement on October 3 describing what it
called a “preliminary internal review of events” at the Erwin
plant. The company acknowledged flooding in its parking lot was a
common occurrence because of the low-lying location of the factory, and
said water began to pool in its parking lot around 10:35 a.m.
Impact Plastics said employees were dismissed from work shortly after a
power outage at 10:39 a.m. and after public warnings pinged cell phones
approximately a minute later.
The company also disputed there were no emergency plans. “Written
evacuation plans were posted in conspicuous areas of the plant many
months prior” to the storm, the company said in a statement.
The company’s statement was released by public relations consultant
Tony Treadway, who told CNN on Wednesday he no longer represents Impact
Plastics. Their attorney, Stephen Johnson, did not return requests for
comment Wednesday.
Peterson texted family photos of flooding
The Peterson family’s lawsuit paints a picture of increasingly
frightened and desperate workers, fearing their efforts to escape the
flooding were already too late.
Peterson texted several photos and videos to members of his family,
which are included in the lawsuit, showing employees’ vehicles
submerged and inoperable as he attempted to take refuge in a
semi-trailer off company property, according to the suit.
Peterson had one final text exchange with his father at 1:27 p.m., the
lawsuit says.
“You ok,” Peterson’s father asked. “Not for Long,” Peterson
replied. He was never heard from again.
Peterson did not die at the factory, but “on the only available route
from the workplace after he was dismissed from work,” the lawsuit
states.
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