NASHVILLE, Tenn. — An inquiry by the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration has disclosed that workers at an East Tennessee plastics facility who tragically lost their lives due to flooding during last year’s Hurricane Helene, had an opportunity to evacuate using “makeshift routes.” The findings were made public on Wednesday.
The investigation concluded that Impact Plastics, Inc. acted “with reasonable diligence” in instructing employees to evacuate the premises during the emergency. The report states that since the employees’ deaths weren’t work-related, no sanctions are deemed necessary.
The flood claimed the lives of six individuals: five employees and a contractor who cleaned the office weekly on September 27, when they were swept away by the floodwaters. Legal representatives for the surviving families strongly challenge the report’s conclusion suggesting the deceased had adequate time to evacuate safely.
“The report from TOSHA disregards essential details such as witness testimonies, critical text messages, emergency alert logs, and photographic evidence,” stated Alex Little, the lawyer representing Johnny Peterson’s family. He emphasized, “In the United States, the truth will be determined by juries, not bureaucrats depending on anonymous sources.”
Peterson was among the twelve individuals who attempted to escape the floodwaters by climbing onto a semi-trailer laden with large spools of plastic piping outside the factory. Although the waters eventually overwhelmed the trailer, six people managed to use the spools for flotation and were rescued later, while the other six perished.
TOSHA’s investigation faced obstacles like “phone service disruptions, language barriers, and additional challenges.” The report also highlighted that the flooding obliterated the company’s safety records.
Luke Widener, the attorney for contractor Sibrina Barnett’s family and other victims, alleged that essential emergency records, including an evacuation plan, were likely never created. He noted how workers from neighboring businesses managed to evacuate safely.
“While we acknowledge TOSHA’s suggestion to enhance emergency preparations, it arrives far too late for our clients,” Widener affirmed.
The report highlights that several employees managed to escape, despite the primary access road being submerged. Some evacuees drove or walked over an embankment leading to a highway, facilitated by nearby workers who dismantled a fence. Others drove over improvised routes onto railroad tracks, created by a neighboring business worker using a tractor. Additionally, some walked to the railroad tracks to flee.
Addressing queries about these impromptu escape routes, Chris Cannon, Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development spokesman, in an email commented, “Auto evacuation wasn’t the sole feasible route for escape,” emphasizing, “TOSHA can’t hold an employer responsible for road conditions.”
Impact Plastics, through attorney Stephen Ross Johnson, expressed approval of TOSHA’s findings. “Importantly, against some media reports, Tennessee OSHA found no evidence suggesting employees were threatened with termination or coerced into working past a safe evacuation point,” read a company statement.
Beyond TOSHA’s examination, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation continues its independent probe into the six fatalities.