NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The family of a Tennessee employee who was killed by catastrophic flooding caused by Hurricane Helene has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company he worked for.
Johnny Peterson was among the Impact Plastics employees who died on September 27th after Helene’s flooding hit Erwin, Tennessee.
Many of the surviving employees have stated they were not allowed to leave the plant in time to avoid the storm’s impact.
The raging waters swept 11 people away and only five were rescued. The suit argues that Impact Plastics had no required plan to safely evacuate employees.
The suit also claims that while local schools and other businesses announced closures because of Hurricane Helene, Impact Plastics instructed its employees to report to work.
Impact Plastics has maintained that it monitored weather conditions and that managers dismissed employees “when water began to cover the parking lot and the adjacent service road, and the plant lost power.”
