Family of DPW worker crushed by trash truck demands answers from leaders

WJZ, FAMILY HANDOUT, SURVEILLANCE VIDEO, TIMOTHY CARTWELL, RENEE MEREDITH, CNN

By Mike Hellgren

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WJZ) — Baltimore’s Department of Public Works (DPW) is under scrutiny as workers protested outside City Hall Friday following the death of a worker on November 8.

Timothy Cartwell, a waste collector with the Reedbird Sanitation Yard, died after being trapped between a utility pole and a trash truck in an alley in West Baltimore.

Cartwell’s death echoed safety concerns raised after the death of Ronald Silver, another DPW worker who died in August after he overheated while on the job.

The families of Cartwell and Silver joined the protest in a call for change and answers from Baltimore leaders.

Cartwell’s family demands action

“Timmy,” as Cartwell is called by family members, served the city for almost two decades.

His loved ones said they still know very little about how he died. They believe it could have been prevented.

“We will be here one for another,” said Shantae Carroll, Timothy Cartwell’s sister-in-law.

She joined the family members of Ronald Silver, who died after collapsing in the heat in August.

Both families were united in their grief and demands for accountability from city leaders.

“We, the family, and I think I can speak for all who are behind me, want justice,” Carroll said.

Pinned by trash truck

Cartwell became pinned between a trash truck and a utility pole in West Baltimore. WJZ obtained video of the tragic incident that happened in a narrow alleyway.

“My brother-in-law was not just a trash man. My brother in law was a man of courage, of good deed, of love, of support, of giving,” his sister-in-law said, speaking on behalf of the family. “He was kind. He was gentle, and he was a man that stood for what was right.”

“We need for you to step up, do what’s right, fix what needs to be fixed,” Carroll added. “Don’t wait another second. Don’t wait another minute. Don’t wait another hour because we don’t know the day or the hour that something can happen. Tragedy will come, and this will happen again.”

The family has questioned whether DPW workers were provided the proper training.

It follows an independent investigation into the agency revealed a lack of safety policies and training for workers after Ronald Silver collapsed and died in the heat last August.

The report also revealed retaliation against employees who speak out about unsafe conditions.

The city has vowed to fix the problems.

“None of us knows exactly what happened except for those who were there,” said Marvin “Doc” Cheatham, the former president of the Baltimore City branch of the NAACP. “And that’s one of the things that has to be done: We have to find out what exactly happened.”

He pointed out no city council members showed up for their event despite multiple invitations.

Later, Baltimore City Council president-elect Zeke Cohen shook hands with members of the Silver and Cartwell families.

“I’ve been called up to this microphone too many times. I’m sick of it,” said Thiru Vignarajah, a lawyer representing the Silver family. “…Our workers—people we employ—are out in savage, inhumane conditions not once in a while, not in an isolated accident—but quite literally every day.”

Shantae Carroll said she does not want her brother-in-law’s life to be forgotten.

“They’re doing a deed for us, the people of Baltimore, so let’s do a deed them as the workers who have done us justice, let’s do them justice,” Carroll said. “I don’t think it’s much to ask for the price that they have paid: Their lives. …They can’t be brought back, so let’s just honor them.”

Ongoing investigations

Maryland’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MOSH) is conducting its own investigation into Cartwell’s death.

The Baltimore City Inspector General Isabel Cumming is also conducting an investigation, after revealing earlier issues within the Department of Public Works.

She told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren Friday she has interviewed more than 100 people and expects to release the results in January.

She encouraged city employees with issues to reach out to her hotline and said their identities will be protected.

The email is OIG@baltimorecity.gov or people may call 443-984-3476 or 800-417-0430.

You can find more information here.

Union wants safety data

This week, the union representing sanitation workers in Baltimore said the city failed to give them critical safety information, and they have concerns about a lack of training.

“We are furious with the lack of attention to it. We are furious with the results of it, the results being death. Let’s be very clear: It’s a dangerous job,” said Patrick Moran, the president of the Maryland chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

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