Two die when wall falls at Gatlinburg sewage treatment plant

[hedgehog]

Source: Knoxville News Sentinel

GATLINBURG — The cause of the catastrophic collapse of the Gatlinburg wastewater treatment plant basin wall that killed two workers and sent nearly 1 million gallons of raw sewage into the Little Pigeon River remained under investigation Tuesday night.

John D. Eslinger, 53, and Don A. Storey, 44, both of Sevier County, died after the 40-foot-high concrete wall crumbled on top of them at 9 a.m., said Gatlinburg Fire Department Chief Greg Miller.
.....

The two victims worked for plant operator Veolia Water North America of Chicago, which has operated the Gatlinburg water treatment plant since 1994.





Read more: http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/apr/05/two-die-when-wall-falls-gatlinburg-sewage-treatmen/

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Triangle Factory Fire + 100 years:

Americans still die at work.

[tularetom]

1. Appears that operation of the plant was contracted out to a private company

I can't say for sure that this collapse is a result of privatization of plant operations but I'd bet anything that the operators spent little or nothing on long term maintenance at the facility.

Can't let anything get in the way of making a profit ya know. Might piss off the stockholders.

[hedgehog]

3. But, but , but.......private enterprise is so much more efficient than the government!

[valerief]

2. As long as the 1% get richer and control men with guns, the 99% don't matter. nt

[Scuba]

4. K & R These two men need to be remembered. n/t

[CanonRay]

5. Two more corpses in the cause of free market privatization

[Rebubula]

6. Or...

...shit happens when working in construction of large, concrete structures.

Everyone is assuming that this is some sort of problem with privatization. The bodies are not even cold and you (and others in this thread) are already trumpeting them as martyrs to the cause - politicizing their deaths without knowing if the death is even relevant to your argument.


In dangerous lines of work, humans will always die from time to time. We are soft, squishy beings with finite life spans working with large, heavy and dangerous toys. No amount of safety measures can prevent accidents.

[greiner3]

8. In other words you are saying;

Shit happens? That's why OSHA is so valuable to the working person. There are less and less of these unfortunate accidents. I wonder if you feel the same way about the Fukishima mess. The people who are dieing there are also working in 'large concrete structures,' albiet the scale is more of a human toll then the ones who died in shit.

[Rebubula]

11. Of course...shit happens.

I love OSHA and its work. I am not denying that enacting safety regulations is tantamount to worker safety.

My point is that people are piling on privatization and criticizing a situation based on preexisting biases.

My other point is that people are trying to politicize a situation without all the facts in place.

[hedgehog]

10. My info is that this was a typical sewgae storage tank - built without

any moisture seal. It takes about 30 years, but the acids in the sewage work their way through the concrete and eat the re-bar.


So no, no way could anyone have predicted and/or prevented this "accident".

[chervilant]

7. Lives lost,

and almost a million gallons of raw sewage in the Little Pigeon... business as usual for the Corporate Megalomaniacs.

[Kelvin Mace]

9. OK, I just read the headline

and thought, "$100 says this is a "privatized" facility.

I can never find any folks to place these bets with.

Once again, people die to "maximize shareholder value".

[Uncle Joe]

12. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, hedgehog.