MEC&F Expert Engineers : 05/14/18

Monday, May 14, 2018

A child playing with a lighter in a closet started a house fire that killed 2-year-old girl, Jazelle Thomas-Whitfield, earlier this month in Grand Rapids, Michigan



Child playing with lighter caused fatal fire
The Associated Press 

Published 6:10 a.m. ET May 11, 2018


Grand Rapids, MI – 


Authorities say a child playing with a lighter in a closet started a house fire that killed a 2-year-old girl earlier this month in western Michigan.

Grand Rapids Fire Department Lt. William Smith confirmed the cause on Thursday. The Grand Rapids Press reports 2-year-old Jazelle Thomas-Whitfield died after being trapped May 3 in the room where the fire started. Flames prevented anyone from getting her out.

Smith says the child who started the fire was a sibling, but didn’t release the child’s age.

The house that burned had two apartments in it. Several other people inside the house at the time of the fire were able to escape.

WOOD-TV reports a state watchdog agency is opening an investigation to see if Children’s Protective Services could have helped protect the girl.




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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Flowers and balloons were placed on the front porch of the home in the 200 block of Dale Street NE Friday.

They’re a makeshift memorial for 2-year-old Jazelle Thomas-Whitfield, who was killed in a house fire Thursday night.

“I heard the fire trucks coming, and when I ran to the corner I seen nothing but black smoke going up in the air,” said Angela Feldman, who lives just down the block. “I instantly found the mother and dropped on the ground and started praying with her, because that's all we could do.”

Feldman said the entire neighborhood is feeling the impact of the tragedy.

“I have no idea who they are, never met them a day in my life,” she said. “But, neighborhood's family.”

So far, investigators haven’t found anything to indicate the fire was intentional. A Michigan State Police K-9 was brought in to make sure there were no signs of foul play, but found no evidence of accelerant.

It may take several days to determine the exact cause of the fire due to extensive damage.

“The more destruction there is, it's that much harder to find a cause,” said acting Grand Rapids Deputy Chief Todd VanderWall.

Arriving fire crews knew the 2-year-old was in a first-floor back bedroom, but neighbors and firefighters who tried to rescue her were driven back by the flames.

The home is broken up into two apartments. The family living upstairs was not home Thursday night. But the family of six, two adults and four children including the little girl who died, were home.

“We had indications initially that there were working smoke detectors in the home,” VanderWall said.

The smoke detectors should have given them time to escape. However, firefighters could see a column of smoke rising from the home as they traveled to the scene from the city’s south side, giving them the indication the fire had spread well before they received a 911 call.

“It seems to us, because we were on the scene within 3 1/2 minutes of when we were first notified, that we were notified later than maybe we should have been,” said VanderWall.

Delayed calls are a problem firefighters encounter on a regular basis.

“A free-burning fire will double in size every minute, so that exemplifies why it's so important to leave the structure immediately,” said VanderWall.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family cover funeral costs and provide for the other children.

For those interested in learning more about fire safety, the Grand Rapids Fire Department offers several options, including a free home safety inspection program that has put over 50,000 smoke detectors at homes around the city.

They also offer tips on how to avoid having a fire, and how to get out if you do experience a fire.


A 29-year-old Boulder County employee died while working at Heil Valley Ranch near Lyons, CO when he slipped, fell down a trail and suffered head trauma




Boulder County employee dies following fall at Heil Valley Ranch
By John Bear


Updated: 05/10/2018 09:55:04 PM MDT


 


The Picture Rock Trailhead sign is seen off of Red Gulch Road at Heil Valley Ranch near Lyons in 2017. (Matthew Jonas / Staff Photographer)

Investigators believe that a 29-year-old Boulder County employee working at Heil Valley Ranch near Lyons on Thursday morning tripped and fell down a trail, sustaining a fatal head injury in the process.

The man, who has not been publicly identified pending notification of his family, was working for Boulder County Parks and Open Space on Thursday, but didn't return to the trailhead from a worksite, according to a news release from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff's office spokeswoman Carrie Haverfield said in an email that the man was a county employee.

Rescue volunteers responded to the area after the man was reported missing shortly after 11 a.m., but the man's coworker found him unresponsive about three quarters of a mile up from the trailhead near the quarry.

Lifesaving measures were attempted, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene after more than 30 minutes of resuscitation was applied.

Investigation revealed that the man was hiking down the trail when he slipped, fell and suffered head trauma. His death is believed to be accidental, and no foul play is suspected.

The Boulder County Coroner's Office will make the official ruling on the cause and manner of death.


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29-year-old male dies while working at Heil Valley
Boulder County, Colo. - At approximately 11:06 A.M. today, the Boulder County
Communications Center received a call reporting that a person working with
Boulder County Parks and Open Space at Heil Valley Ranch didn’t return to the
trailhead as expected from a worksite.
First responders and search and rescue volunteers were
dispatched and co-workers began searching for the missing employee, a
29-year-old male. The employee was located by a co-worker approximately ¾ of a
mile up from the trailhead near the quarry. He was found unresponsive and life
saving measures, including CPR began immediately. He was pronounced dead on-scene
after over 30 minutes of resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful. It is
believed he was hiking back down to the trailhead and tripped, fell and sustained
head trauma. At this time, it is believed this was an accidental death, no foul
play is suspected.
Agencies that responded to the scene were: Boulder County
Sheriff’s Office, Boulder County Parks and Open Space, Rocky Mountain Rescue,
Lefthand Fire Protection District, North Colorado Med Evac and AMR ambulance.
Detectives from the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office and
investigators from the Boulder County Coroner’s Office are investigating. The
identity of the victim will not be released until family members have been
notified. The cause and manner of death will be determined by the Coroner’s
Office.
The associated case number is: 18-2633.

Chemical plant worker, 43-year-old Clinton "Clint" Colby Haywood Miller, died after he fell 10 feet into an empty tank at AkzoNobel company's Salisbury plant in South Carolina





SALISBURY, N.C. —



A North Carolina chemical plant is on shutdown as the company and investigators explore why a worker died.

A spokeswoman for Dutch chemical-maker AkzoNobel said Sunday the man fell into an empty tank at the company's Salisbury plant. Spokeswoman Stephanie Murray says the site produces polymers used in everyday personal care products.

She said she doesn't know if the worker died from falling 10 feet into the tank or as a result of some chemical reaction. Murray says investigations are under way. The worker was involved with operations to load the tank around 4 a.m. Saturday. Murray says production at the plant has been suspended since the incident.



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Worker Falls to Death at AkzoNobel Chemical Plant in NC
May 7, 2018





The AkzoNobel Surface Chemistry plant in Salisbury, NC. Image courtesy of Google Earth

A worker died early Saturday following a fall into an empty tank at the AkzoNobel plant in Salisbury, NC during a loading operation, officials told local news organizations.

The worker fell into the storage vessel at about 4 a.m., and emergency personnel arrived at the AkzoNobel Surface Chemistry site in Salisbury to find the man dead in the tank, the company told Charlotte, NC-based CBS News affiliate WBTV.

“We are terribly saddened by this loss and our thoughts and prayers are with the employee’s family and the rest of the employees at our site in Salisbury. At this time, we are working with first responder sto further investigate the incident. Our primary concern is providing support for the family and ensuring the continued well-being and safety of our other employees,” a company spokesperson said to WBTV.

Family members of the victim said the man involved in the incident was 43-year-old Clint Miller. An AkzoNobel spokesperson said in a report by the Associated Press that it is unclear whether the fatal injuries were caused by the fall itself or a chemical reaction.

Production at the plant was halted after the death. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has opened an investigation into the incident.

AkzoNobel’s plant in Salisbury manufactures polymers found in personal care goods. 


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Clinton "Clint" Colby Haywood Miller, 43, of Rockwell, passed away Saturday, May 5, 2018.

He was born July 10, 1974 in Charlotte, NC to Sandra Gibb Miller and the late Kelly Miller. Clint was a 1992 graduate of West Charlotte High School and he attended Wingate University. Clint worked for AzkoNobel in Salisbury.

Clint was a man who was strong in his faith that had a passion for helping others. He was a faithful member and volunteer of Nazareth Community Church, he was a member of the choir, and part of the Men's Group. He loved his girls, his grandchildren, golf, the Mets, and the Dallas Cowboys.

He will be remembered as the BEST husband, daddy and pop pop!

In addition to his mother, Clint is survived by his wife of over 24 years, Cynthia Upright Miller, whom he married on June 19, 1993; daughters, Alana Hope Cruse and husband James of Kings Bay, GA, and Kayla Miller Lakey and husband Samuel of Kannapolis; grandsons, Judah and Asher Lakey; brother, John Cordell of Baltimore, MD; and sister, Kelly Brickey of Mount Holly, NC.

The family will greet friends and relatives on Monday, May 14, 2018, 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm at Nazareth Community Church, Rockwell, NC.

The funeral service will be held at 4:00 pm on Monday, May 14, 2018, at Nazareth Community Church, Rockwell, NC, with Rev. Mike Shoaf, officiating.

Burial will follow in the Nazareth Community Church Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Nazareth Community Church PO Box 444 Rockwell NC 28138.