By Natalie Neysa Alund
The Knoxville News-Sentinel
GATLINBURG, Tenn. — A construction worker at the Gatlinburg Wastewater Treatment Plant died Thursday morning in an earth wall collapse, the third death at the facility since April.
The unidentified man in his late 50s was fatally injured after being struck from behind by loose dirt and rock, according to city officials.
Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigators are probing the fatality.
NEO Corp., of Canton, N.C., is working on behalf of the city to demolish a 30-foot-high basin at the plant off Banner Road following a wall collapse in April. Two men died in that collapse and more than a million gallons of raw sewage spilled into the nearby Little Pigeon River. Demolition of the basin started last month after the city awarded a $96,100 contract to NEO on Dec. 6. “The city of Gatlinburg is deeply saddened by the tragic event which occurred today,” a statement from the city reads. “The city wishes to express its sympathy to the family of the construction company worker. We regret that this event has occurred and recognize the tragedy of the situation.”
Part of an earthen wall at the site slid down about 10:10 a.m. Demolition crews were digging a ditch, according to a Sevier County 911 supervisor.
When Gatlinburg police arrived they “advised that rescue was needed and that this was a construction incident involving an earth wall collapse,” according to the city’s statement.
Working inside yellow crime-scene tape, Gatlinburg Fire and EMS crews removed the body from the ditch and placed it in an ambulance shortly after 11:30 a.m. The body was taken to LeConte Medical Center, according to the city. The worker’s name was being withheld pending notification of family.
According to the city, the demolition site has been “under the control” of NEO since the firm began work in early January. The city referred questions about the incident to NEO.
NEO President Todd Escaravage did not return a phone call or an email.
TOSHA investigators were dispatched from their Kingsport office shortly after 11 a.m., said TOSHA spokesman Jeff Hentschel.
Investigators, Hentschel said, will determine whether any worker safety lapses contributed to the incident. He said TOSHA has no records of prior issues or complaints regarding NEO in Tennessee.
TOSHA employees have six months to complete their investigation, although on average their findings are determined within 6-8 weeks, Hentschel said.
“Fatalities, of course, are a little more complex,” he said.
As of this week, demolition at the plant had been on track to hit a March 22 completion date, said Dale Phelps, utility manager for the city of Gatlinburg.
It was unknown if the worker’s death will delay that deadline.
Veolia Water North America plant workers John Eslinger, 53, and Don Storey, 44, died the morning of April 5, when the basin’s east wall collapsed on top of a flow control building while the men were in it. Heavy overnight rainfall had drenched the region.
Since the catastrophe, the Gatlinburg plant has remained operational, with the city using a temporary system. In October, state labor officials announced that their investigation into the collapse and fatalities found no safety violations. A deficiency in the basin’s concrete wall construction was to blame for its failure, they said.
Family for both workers who died have retained attorneys. But as of Thursday no lawsuit had been filed.
The tank that failed was built into a hill and contained several multicelled sewage basins that were divided by walls.
The contractors plan to keep the west wall intact to serve as a retaining wall, according to Bill Ehrenbeck, project manager for Veolia Water, the company that runs the city plant. The rest is being torn down piece by piece and carted to a landfill.
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