Jun 30, 2009 6:06 am US/Eastern
3 NYC Workers Die While Trapped In Hole
FDNY: Father Tries To Save Son, Another Worker Then Dies Trying To Help As Men Overcome By Toxic Fumes
By KATHRYN BROWN, CBS 2 HD News
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Three workers died after becoming trapped inside a hole at a waste management station in Queens on June 29, 29. This is an aerial of the scene.
CBS
Three trapped workers were found dead Monday in a sewage hole at a waste management facility in the Jamaica section of Queens.
CBS 2 HD has learned the workplace tragedy is now a family tragedy as well. A father and his son were among the three killed. They were apparently doing contracting work when the son fell down 18 feet into a hole and was overcome by toxic fumes.
The other two went in after him when he didn't return, said John Sudnik, FDNY deputy assistant chief of the Queens borough command. They all fell through the shaft and into the well.
Police identified the victims as 49-year-old Shlomo Dahan, his 23-year-old son, Harel Dahan, both of Brooklyn, and 52-year-old Rene Francisco Rivas, of Queens. The medical examiner will determine what caused their deaths.
Abe Rosenthal, who said he was a friend of one of the victims, arrived on the scene with a rabbi after getting a call about the accident. He said his friend was the owner of the company and possibly died with a son who worked with him.
"I can't believe what happened," Rosenthal said. "He was the sweetest guy, a good father."
The workers were hired to clean out a basin intended to catch water and waste from the transfer station, where garbage is sorted for recycling. The entrance to the basin is through a manhole 3 feet wide and 18 feet long. It isn't clear how far they got down before they fell.
The men likely were overcome by hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas common in wells like the one they were hired to clean out, Sudnik said. The gas is created by water and decomposing garbage. About 100 parts per million of the gas in the air is considered incredibly dangerous, and crews were getting readings at the scene of 200 parts per million, Sudnik said.
Emergency crews got a call around 2:30 p.m. and were on the scene seven minutes later. By the time they reached the workers, they were dead, Sudnik said. It took about 20 minutes to pull them out.
The waste transfer station, called Royal Waste Services, is attached to the Regal Recycling company. A person who answered the phone there wouldn't comment.
The transfer station is in an industrial stretch of Queens, with a dirt road leading to the facility, not far from the Long Island Rail Road station. The stench of garbage permeates the area. A sign saying "putrescible solid waste" and another that says "No drums, asbestos, hazardous materials, medical waste or tires" hang at the gate.
"It's scary, but they make sure we're safe around here," worker Charles Hunt told CBS 2 HD. "Safety. We've been written up without safety helmets, without safety vests, so I don't know. It's scary, though."
Sudnick said there is always risk involved in jobs like this.
"There always dangerous conditions in confined spaces," Sudnick said. "There's hazardous atmospheres. There could be oxygen that's displaced that could cause a victim to be overcome."
Chopper 2 HD was over the scene Monday night as workers wearing hazardous materials suits were working the area.
Police are also reviewing video of the scene hoping it can help investigators piece together what happened to the three workers.
Please stay with CBS 2 HD and wcbstv.com for more on this developing story.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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