ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, September 6, 1996 TAG: 9609060048
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: YORKTOWN
SOURCE: Associated Press
Four civilian employees working at Yorktown Naval Weapons Station died Thursday in a sewage tank accident, base officials said.
The accident occurred about 3:30 p.m. when one of the workers entered a sewage tank on the station's pier on the York River to do some maintenance, said Kay Phillips, public information officer at Naval Ordinance Center, Atlantic Division.
Apparently while disconnecting a valve in the tank, he was overcome by fumes. With the valve disconnected, the tank partially filled with gas and sewage, she said.
Phillips said the other three workers entered the tank, apparently to rescue their colleague, and were overcome by fumes. Methane - an odorless, colorless and combustible gas - is often found in sewage tanks.
J. Thomas Black, a base spokesman, identified the dead as: Randy Sparks and Orlando Welsh, both of the Lackey community in James City County; Jason Parker of Seaford; and Darrell Gauthier of Norfolk. The four worked for Virginia Beach-based Qualicon Corp.
He said all four were pronounced dead at the scene.
The tank is used as a holding facility for sewage waste pumped out of docking ships, Black said. He said Qualicon had been doing maintenance work at the pier for several months, but he didn't know anything more specific about the project.
Phillips said she believed the workers were involved in hurricane preparations.
Qualicon's president, Carl Edwards, was at the weapons station until late Thursday and was not immediately available to comment. There was no answer the company's office in Virginia Beach.
The Navy is investigating the deaths to find the cause, Phillips said. The bodies of the four were sent to the state medical examiner for autopsies.
LENGTH: Short : 45 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB