After 8 die in Kentucky candle factory, workers question company’s tornado preparation
MAYFIELD, Ky. — The first tornado warning was already over when Elijah Johnson walked onto the candle factory floor to begin his 6 p.m. shift.
A team leader instructed the 20-year-old candle inspector to get into position on the production line. Johnson began checking candles on the conveyor belt, until he heard a group of workers ask the night supervisor if they could leave before the brunt of the storms.
Johnson asked too, he said, but the supervisor said no.
“Even with the weather bad like this, you’re still not going to let me go?” he asked.
Days after the massive storm system tore through Kentucky and five other states — killing 88 people, including eight at the candle factory — some workers have raised questions about the company’s tornado preparation: Why didn’t
