Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 23, 1993 TAG: 9303230243
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARY BISHOP STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
SHARED-BLAME FINDING EASES FAMILIES' PAIN
FAMILIES OF THREE Roanoke Valley men killed by glue fumes in a work accident endured months of hints that it was all the men's fault. Thank goodness, one man's former wife says, the truth is coming out, and their employer is finally getting its share of the blame.
It's been a compounded nightmare for the families of Frank Wayne Johnson, Stephen "Cookie" Miller and Martin "Boomer" Mroczkowski.
First, the three men died in a ghastly accident in Arlington County.
Roanoke Belt Inc. sent them there in September to repair rubber linings in giant disinfectant storage tanks at the county's sewage-treatment plant.
Overcome by fumes from an open can of glue, the men died inside one of the tanks. Toxic vapors were so strong, it took rescuers almost 12 hours to get the bodies out.
Then, during the six months it took the state to investigate the accident, people around the Roanoke Valley seemed to blame the men entirely for their deaths.
"People would say, `Why didn't they do this? Why didn't they do that?' " said Joyce Johnson, Frank Johnson's ex-wife.
On Friday, occupational safety and health investigators with the state Department of Labor and Industry charged that the men had neither the training nor the kind of equipment that might have saved their lives.
The state fined Roanoke Belt Inc. more than $610,000 - the largest fine ever imposed in a Virginia industrial accident.
Officials accused the company of 17 violations, including failure to properly train the men about the hazards of working in confined spaces. The state said that the men descended into the tank through a 24-inch "manway" at the top and were not attached to retrieval lines. Nor, said the state, did they have a device available to hoist them out of there.
The report indicates that the men were not blameless, either. State investigators noted that they didn't properly ventilate the tank and they weren't wearing respirators. In the tank, along with flammable solvents, investigators found multiple sources of ignition - three cigarette lighters, a loaded .22-caliber pistol and equipment that could have sparked a fire.
Roanoke Belt's lawyer, John Huddle, issued a statement Monday denying the accusations. The company will fight the charges, first in an informal meeting with department officials, then, if necessary, in a full-blown hearing.
He said company owner Roger Wickham counted the dead men, especially the two older ones, among his close friends.
Joyce Johnson said the months of investigation have been especially difficult for Mroczkowski's mother, Linda. The other two men were seasoned, middle-aged tank workers. He was an inexperienced helper, only 21. He was her only son.
"She's taking it hard," said Joyce Johnson. It hurts so much, "She can't hardly look at his pictures."
Joyce Johnson is one of the few people close to the men who will talk about them. Others may file suits against the company and fear saying the wrong thing now.
Frank Johnson was at Roanoke Belt for eight years, specializing in tank repairs, Joyce Johnson said. "That was his job, to go out on the road and reline those tanks. He worked every hour he could."
The Johnsons were together 28 years, 17 of those years as a married couple.
Frank raised Joyce's two toddlers with her. "He was the only father they ever knew," she said.
Now they're grown, and he was crazy about his two stepgrand-daughters, Jessica and Stephanie.
Frank and Joyce Johnson divorced last summer. They were still friends. Frank's death hit Joyce hard.
Last Christmas was the worst time for the men's families, she said.
Roanoke Belt didn't remember them, she said. "They went on with their Christmas parties and things, and we didn't celebrate Christmas."
Huddle said there was no intention of shutting out the families. Those still at the small company were friends of the men and were "emotionally devastated" by their deaths.
Joyce Johnson was relieved that details of the accident are beginning to emerge.
"This," she said, "will give Frank, Boomer and Cookie the respect that they deserve."
Keywords:
FATALITY