Poultry workers in northeastern Georgia say they escaped through a mist of vaporization of liquid nitrogen that killed six of their co-workers
GAINESVILLE, Georgia. – Poultry workers in northeastern Georgia said they escaped through a mist of vaporization of liquid nitrogen that killed six of their co-workers, while an investigation continued Friday into the cause of the leak at the Foundation Food Group.
Hall County sheriff’s office identified the victims on Friday as: Jose DeJesus Elias-Cabrera, of Gainesville, 45; Corey Alan Murphy, of Clermont, 35; Nelly Perez-Rafael, 28, from Gainesville; Saulo Suarez-Bernal, from Dawsonville, 41; Victor Vellez, from Gainesville, 38; and Edgar Vera-Garcia, 28, from Gainesville.
Three workers remained in critical condition on Friday, said Beth Downs, a spokeswoman for the Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville. A person with minor injuries was released on Friday.
Relatives of several deceased workers declined to comment to the Associated Press on Friday. The factory remained closed and surrounded by yellow police tape. Scattered flowers, wreaths and candles were deposited on the perimeter of the property as memorials. A community watch is scheduled for Saturday.
The investigators started evaluating equipment at the plant that may have influenced the spill, but said its location and cause have not yet been determined. The state fireman’s office discarded a shut-off valve in the pipeline that connects a nitrogen storage tank outside the building to the indoor equipment, but the agency does not supervise other equipment at the plant, spokesman Weston Burleson said. Burleson referred additional questions to Hall County officials, who he said was leading the investigation with the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Workers left the factory on Thursday morning, after a liquid nitrogen line broke. The plant processes the chicken into items like nuggets and freezes them for later use.
Jameel Fareed told WSB-TV that he avoided walking in the cloud of liquid nitrogen.
“First, we thought there was something wrong with the freezer. Then they started saying, ‘Get out,’ ”said Fareed. “I just saw the fog and, when I couldn’t see down the stairs, I turned around. But I didn’t feel anything. “
Recordings of calls to emergency workers obtained by local media revealed moments of panic inside the factory on Thursday.
“I received a call from one of my employees saying that I have a person who could potentially be frozen with liquid nitrogen,” a caller told 911, panting when a siren sounded in the background, on a call obtained by WXIA-TV. “He’s foaming at the mouth, his eyes are open, fighting. I see some firefighters inside. He’s breathing very slowly. “
Maria del Rosario Palacios leads Georgia Familias Unidas, a Latin defense group in Gainesville. She said several workers told her that they developed headaches, apparently due to a lack of oxygen. She said the workers said there was a loud noise, and then some workers were rushed to a room in the factory before leaving, with a strong odor indicating the presence of nitrogen.
Workers who were not hospitalized were examined after being evacuated to a nearby church, but Palacios said he is concerned that they may have suffered undetected injuries.
“These families need medical attention,” said Palacios. “It is difficult to convince people to come in and check out.”
Gainesville is the center of Georgia’s poultry industry, the largest in the country. Thousands of employees work in various processing factories around the city and much of the workforce, as in many meat processing factories across the country, is Latin.
The Roman Catholic Church of San Miguel in Gainesville has parishioners working at the plant where the spill occurred, and deacon Ken Lampert said he was concerned about how the victims’ families would deal financially. The community is not rich and the income usually supports large families.
“When, out of the blue, Mom and Dad went to work yesterday and didn’t come home tonight, it’s devastating,” he said. “We will unite around them and take care of them and make sure that life goes on.”
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The story has been corrected to show that the company’s name is Foundation Food Group, not Foundation Foods Group.