Many disaster recovery workers cleaning up after major flooding in Michigan have tested positive for the coronavirus — and they say the working conditions were to blame. 'We were treated worse than animals,' one worker said.
An aerial view of floodwaters flowing from the Tittabawassee River into the lower part of downtown Midland, Mich., on May 20. Thousands of residents were ordered to evacuate after two dams collapsed, causing flooding.An aerial view of floodwaters flowing from the Tittabawassee River into the lower part of downtown Midland, Mich., on May 20. Thousands of residents were ordered to evacuate after two dams collapsed, causing flooding.Two crises collided this spring in Michigan.
Bellaliz Gonzalez recorded a video where she said many recovery workers had tested positive for the coronavirus and many were feeling sick as they were packed into vans and transported home from Midland, Mich.Bellaliz Gonzalez recorded a video where she said many recovery workers had tested positive for the coronavirus and many were feeling sick as they were packed into vans and transported home from Midland, Mich.
"In a sense, they're like the farmworkers and meat packers ... with one difference," Soni said."This is a workforce on the go ... that spends most of the year traveling from place to place, fixing up towns, cities, homes and buildings. And that's an additional vulnerability." "We were treated worse than animals," Gonzalez said."They didn't care about our well-being and our lives, they didn't care that we are in the middle of a pandemic.""We had some people from out of state come in to help, and we are grateful for help, but they brought COVID-19 with them," Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in an interview with member station WDET in Detroit last month.
"You really shouldn't cram four and five people into a hotel room that aren't necessarily family members, or put them in a situation where they're thousands of miles from home where they can be exposed to the virus," said Joel Strasz, a public health officer in Bay County, Mich., where the workers were staying.
Servpro is a disaster recovery company with franchises around the country, including the one in Michigan hired by the hospital for the cleanup effort. Neither Servpro nor the local franchise responded to requests for comment. "That's a huge problem," Soni said."It means no one owns and pays for the standards to be enforced. No one is ultimately accountable."
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