Woman speaks out after brother dies in Amazon warehouse
US-based retail giant Amazon is facing questions and criticism over its health and safety policies after six workers died when an Illinois warehouse was destroyed by a tornado on Friday.
The tornado was one of at least 30 that left areas across several states in devastation, and caused the Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, to collapse.
One person was injured and 45 others were rescued safely.
Speaking at a news conference on Saturday, Edwardsville Fire Chief James Whiteford said walls on both sides of the building collapsed inwards, while the roof collapsed downward.
According to the National Weather Service, the tornado touched down in Edwardsville at approximately 8.35pm.
First responders surrounded the Edwardsville warehouse, where around 100 people were trapped. Image: Getty Images
Amazon has said its team had “worked quickly” in response to the tornado, and that site leaders told employees on duty to take shelter at around 8.16pm local time.
When contacted by the BBC, Amazon said in a statement that the site received tornado warnings between 8.06pm and 8.16pm local time, before the tornado struck at 8.27pm.
However, Rachel Cope, the sister of one of the victims, told the BBC she understood from a conversation between her brother and parents that workers weren’t immediately told to shelter following the first warning siren.
Her brother, 29-year-old Clayton Cope, spoke to his family on the phone shortly before the building was struck, with his mother Carla saying she called to warn him of the approaching tornado.
“We told him it looked like the storm was heading that way and that he needed to get to shelter,” Carla told NBC-affiliated television station KSDK.
Clayton, formerly trained in the Navy, told his mother that he would warn his coworkers before taking shelter.
Rachel has since taken to social media calling for publicity around the company’s approach to health and safety.
“Everyone knows that this warehouse didn’t let everyone get to shelter after he [sic] first siren was heard,” she wrote in a Facebook post.
“Everyone knows that all Amazon cares about is productivity. My brother never would have died if this company actually gave 2 shits about their employees and got them to safety after the storm started to get bad and took it seriously…
“I want them to answer for this, I want this to be a starting point of places taking the lives of their employees seriously and treating them as more than a number. This never would have happened if they cared about lives over productivity and you all know that.”
Another victim, father-of-four Larry Virden, reportedly texted his long-term girlfriend telling her the company wouldn’t let workers leave.
Cherie Jones, his partner of 13 years, told The Post he had texted her at 8.23pm local time, with her messages sent at 8.51pm going unanswered.
“I got text messages from him. He always tells me when he is filling up the Amazon truck when he is getting ready to go back,” she said. “I was like ‘OK, I love you’. He’s like, ‘well Amazon won’t let me leave until after the storm blows over’.”
“We heard the tornado didn’t touch down until 8.39 so he had 20 minutes to get home.
“I messaged him and that was the last text message I got from him.
“I told him where we live, it was only lightning at the time. After that, I got nothing from him.”
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced it will investigate the collapse.
Founder Jeff Bezos has also been the target of criticism after posting pictures of himself and his Blue Origin space crew following the incident.
He later issued a statement expressing his condolences to the families of the victims.
“The news from Edwardsville is tragic. We’re heartbroken over the loss of our teammates there, and our thoughts and prayers are with their families and loved ones,” he wrote.
Amazon has said it will donate $USD 1 million ($AUD 1.41 million or $NZD 1.48 million) to the Edwardsville Community Foundation, which represents 0.0000009 percent of the company’s earnings in Q3 2021.
The company has also said it will provide relief supplies such as transport, food and water.
Images: Getty Images