Congresswoman demands Longview mill pay workers sidelined by disaster

U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez sent a letter Monday seeking a commitment from a Longview mill to pay its workers through the investigation into a catastrophic industrial accident.

Last week, a chemical tank at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. facility in Longview failed, spilling a caustic chemical known as white liquor and killing 11 workers.

I was relieved to hear Nippon's verbal commitment on May 27th that all employees will continue to receive compensation during the course of the investigation," Gluesenkamp Perez, a Democrat who represents Southwest Washington, wrote in the letter. "Since then, Nippon has seemed to walk back that commitment, telling workers they'll only be paid through June 7."

"I write to request written confirmation that all employees will continue to receive pay and benefits for the duration of the investigation and any resulting work stoppage," she added.

An email seeking comment to a spokesperson for Nippon Dynawave about the letter wasn't immediately returned.

In addition to the industrial accident's emotional toll, "workers are understandably concerned about their livelihoods and their ability to support their households during what may be an extended period of operational disruption," wrote the congresswoman.

Gluesenkamp Perez's office did not immediately respond to follow-up questions.

Federal investigators reached the scene Wednesday, the day after the tank failed, to begin looking into the cause of the accident.

It took until Saturday for crews to recover the remains of the ninth and final missing worker from the scene. Two other workers injured in the accident died at hospitals.

Also on Monday, the state Department of Labor & Industries announced it would conduct a workplace safety investigation into the accident.

With the missing workers all recovered, the agency "will have direct access to the site of the deadly accident" and will review "whether there were safety violations connected to the incident, according to the news release.

"We're committed to getting to the bottom of this and figuring out what happened," said L&I Director Joel Sacks in the release. "In the coming months, L&I will be conducting a detailed investigation seeking answers and accountability."

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