CAMILLA, Ga. — U.S. Sens. Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff of Georgia are calling on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to provide timely updates about their investigation into a deadly explosion at a chicken plant.
The Tyson Foods facility in Camilla, Ga. just three-and-a-half hours south of Atlanta, had an explosion on-site that injured multiple employees and killed a bystander.
The bystander, the wife of one of the workers, had been sleeping in their truck while her husband was at work, the Mitchell County coroner confirmed to WTXL.
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The Mitchell County facility is the largest employer in the area. The senators said in a statement that “the plant’s operations are integral to the community, and this tragedy has profoundly affected many of the plant’s employees and the larger Camilla community.”
The senators also drew attention to the “consistently higher rate of severe injuries” at meat and poultry plants in the United States, compared to other “typically considered hazardous” jobs like working at sawmills, in building construction and oil and gas drilling.
“While we understand that the investigation into this explosion is ongoing and will require time to complete, we respectfully request regular updates and a full briefing on the results of this investigation at the appropriate time. This transparency will be essential to providing affected families and the broader community with greater insight into the cause of the explosion and any progress being made to ensure such tragedies never happen again,” the lawmakers’ joint statement said in part.
When the explosion happened in December, a Tyson spokesperson provided WTXL with the following statement:
“We are working closely with local authorities to determine the cause of a late-night fire at our Camilla, Georgia facility that resulted in the death of one person and several injuries. We extend our deepest condolences to their family and friends during this difficult time. Right now we are still gathering the facts, but ensuring the safety of our team members is our top priority, and we are conducting a full investigation into the cause of the fire.”
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