Amazon Worker Who Died When Tornado Hit the Warehouse Was Not Allowed to Leave, Girlfriend Says
An Amazon worker who died when a tornado collapsed an Amazon warehouse was not allowed to leave before the tornado touched down, according to his girlfriend.
Larry Virden texted his girlfriend before the deadly tornado, saying that the company had instructed him to postpone driving home and stay put until the storm passed. He was killed on Friday night when the roof came down at the Amazon warehouse, according to the New York Post report.
Virden's girlfriend of 13 years, Cherie Jones, said she received text messages from him, adding that her boyfriend always tells her when he is filling up the Amazon truck and getting ready to go back.
Jones said Virden texted her that Amazon will not let him leave until the storm blew over. She said that she received the text around 8:23 p.m., while the tornado reportedly hit the area at 8:39 p.m.
She said that Virden had 20 minutes to get home with that time frame in mind.
Jones said that she does not fault Amazon for her boyfriend's death. However, she keeps on thinking, "what if the company had let him leave?" She said that Virden could have made it home.
Jones said that Virden liked working at the company as he gets to work outside.
The Amazon facility opened in July 2020 and employed 190 workers.
The company noted that employees and drivers are allowed to have their staff have their cellphones while working.
Previously, Amazon prohibited workers from having their phones on warehouse floors, ordering employees to have their phones in their vehicles or lockers.
The policy was withdrawn during the pandemic. One Amazon employee from a neighboring facility in Illinois said that there is "no way in hell" that he would be relying on Amazon to keep them safe.
The employee said they would resign if they reimpose the no-cell phone policy.
Factory Workers Amid Tornado Warning
Employees of candle factory Mayfield Consumer Products expressed their want to leave when they heard the sirens.
However, at least five workers said supervisors warned employees that they would be fired if they left their shifts early, according to an NBC News report.
The factory was later destroyed when the tornado had hit it.
The workers said that as many as 15 workers pleaded with managers to let them take shelter at their own homes, but their requests were declined.
At least eight people died in the factory making scented candles.
A spokesperson for the company categorically denied that there were threats from supervisors when workers wanted to leave, according to an Independent report.
Factory worker McKayle Emery was trapped under the rubble for six hours. She said that staff had first asked to leave not long after sirens sounded at 5:30 p.m.
Emery added that she overheard managers telling a group of workers that they are more than likely to be fired if they leave.
Another worker named Haley Conder said that around 15 people requested to go home but were told that they should not leave as it was unsafe.
However, they were then later told to go back to work afterward.
READ MORE: Jeff Bezos Warns Employees "One Day, Amazon Will Fail"
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Mary Webber
WATCH: Search Continues For Factory Worker Tornado Survivors - from NBC News