An attorney for the family of a 26-year-old Amazon contractor who died in a Madison County Amazon warehouse collapse in December alleged Tuesday the facility showed signs of structural issues.
A government engineer who responded to the scene of the warehouse collapse Dec. 10 in Edwardsville found structural concerns regarding the facility’s support columns, according to a copy of the engineer’s report released by Jack Casciato, an attorney with Chicago-based Clifford Law Offices.
“I became concerned when I noticed that none of the columns appeared to be ripped or torn from the base,” the engineer wrote in a four-page report from West County EMS & Fire. “This was especially concerning to me knowing that the International Building Code (IBC) requires structural members to be secured against uplift from wind loads, among other things.”
The engineer wrote there was “no weld or bolted connection at the base of any column, but only a bead of what appeared to be some sort of caulk around the column at the finished floor line.” Examination of the empty pockets where the columns once stood also revealed no evidence of “positive securement,” the engineer wrote.
Casciato, who obtained the report through a Freedom of Information Act request, represents the family of Austin McEwen, one of six workers at the Amazon warehouse who died in the tornado. An initial lawsuit filed in Madison County Circuit Court in January alleges the Amazon facility had inadequate emergency plans and no basement shelter. The lawsuit alleges McEwen and others were told to shelter in a bathroom during the storm.
In a news conference Tuesday, Casciato said “holiday profits took precedence” over worker safety on the day of the tornado. “Delivering packages that day was more important than safety,” he said.
In a statement, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said the company continues to focus “on supporting our team and all those affected by this tragic natural disaster.”
“Investigators continue to conduct a comprehensive forensic examination of the building and debris — so it’s premature and misleading to suggest there were any structural issues,” Nantel said.
She said construction of the building was completed in 2018 “in compliance with all applicable building codes as documented by the city and the original owner” and that the building passed city inspections again when Amazon leased the building in 2020.
Amazon is also facing scrutiny over its Edwardsville facility from Congress. Members of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform have requested documents from Amazon regarding its labor practices, citing the company’s response to the tornado strike.
In a March 31 letter to CEO Andy Jassy, committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Cori Bush wrote they were “concerned by recent reports that Amazon may be putting the health and safety of its workers at risk, including by requiring them to work in dangerous conditions during tornadoes, hurricanes, and other extreme weather.”
The representatives requested documents from the company by Thursday.
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