Family Hopes Workplace Death Will Lead To Change At Tulsa Company

Federal safety inspectors crack down on a Tulsa company after the workplace death of one of their employees. Now the Occupational Safety and Health Administration want Cintas to pay almost $3 million

Friday, August 17th 2007, 8:31 pm

By: News On 6

Federal safety inspectors crack down on a Tulsa company after the workplace death of one of their employees. Now the Occupational Safety and Health Administration want Cintas to pay almost $3 million for violations at its Tulsa facility. News On 6 anchor Latoya Silmon sat down with the lawyer who represents the victim's family on Friday. She reports the family hopes even more will be done to prevent this from ever happening again.

March 6th started off as a normal day at Cintas, but it ended with one man dead and a family shattered.

â€œThey are still devastated. Eleazar was the center of this family, he was the center of their world, and that's been taken away from them in an instant,â€ said Frank Frasier, Torres-Gomez family attorney.

Eleazar Torres-Gomez fell into an industrial dryer, while it was on, at the Cintas laundry plant last March. For 20 minutes he was trapped in 300 degree temperatures. In a statement his son, Emmanuel Torres-Gomez, said, "thought of how my father must have suffered haunts me and my family everyday. I also think about how Cintas could have prevented this terrible tragedy."

OSHA agrees, it says Cintas ignored health and safety rules. It has proposed a $2.78 million fine against the company.

â€œThis is the biggest fine I've ever seen imposed by OSHA in Oklahoma,â€ Frasier said.

But Frasier says his clients hope new laws will make an even bigger impact.

â€œThey don't want this to ever happen to anyone again, and knowing that it's the lawmakers who can make the changes they felt compelled to share their story with Senator Kennedy,â€ said Frasier.

Cintas has 15 days to file its response. Frasier believes the company will fight the fine. Meanwhile, his clients have filed a lawsuit against Cintas and the dryer's manufacturer. They may also testify before congress.

Watch the video: OSHA Imposes Hefty Fine Against Cintas

Related Stories:

3/6/2007 Worker Killed In Freak Accident

3/7/2007 Unions Critical Of A Tulsa Plant

3/13/2007 Congressmen Seeks Cintas Investigation

3/23/2007 Cintas Blames Death On Employee's Failure To Follow Training

4/26/2007 Family Of Man Killed At Cintas Plant Speaks At Congress

7/20/2007 Family Of Man Killed In Industrial Accident Sues Company

8/17/2007 Safety Investigators Propose $2.78 Million In Cintas Fines