Impact Plastics employee recalls being forced to stay, said owners are lying

ERWIN, Tenn. (WJHL)—A man employed by Impact Plastics claims he and his coworkers were told to stay at the facility as the area began to flood.

Robert Jarvis said he tried to get permission to leave but was told to stay. This contradicts what the CEO of Impact Plastics said in a preliminary review on Thursday.

Regardless, lives were lost that day, with some people still missing.

Impact Plastics owners claim they told Jarvis and his fellow employees to leave.

However, Jarvis said, “That’s completely false. That’s a lie.”

By the time they were allowed to leave, Jarvis said the parking lot was already flooded, and there was no way out.

“I could see fire and police, but there was no way for them to get to us,” he says.

Jarvis said with nowhere to go, he feared for his life.

“My car washed down the road with me in it. Someone rescued me with just a minute to spare,” he said.

He said his coworkers who did not make it were good, hard-working people.

“[The owners] are 100% responsible because they didn’t let us leave. We shouldn’t have been at work that day,” Jarvis said.

Jarvis feels the events leading up to the flooding should be investigated.

DA: TBI investigating Impact Plastics flood response

He said, “I feel like if they investigate this that justice will be served.”

Jarvis said Impact Plastics owners haven’t even contacted him to see if he is okay.

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