They were threatened with dismissal if they left the workplace, What is the truth about the death of the Kentucky hurricane victims?

In shocking testimonies, Amazon warehouse workers in Illinois and candle factory workers in Kentucky said that they were forced to stay at their workplaces during the deadly hurricane, and threatened with dismissal if they left the place.

Over the past few days, a number of US states have witnessed devastating and deadly hurricanes, which caused severe damage to many homes, facilities and farms, and resulted in dozens of deaths and injuries.

While the efforts of rescue teams and local authorities in Kentucky, the state most affected, and a number of other US states, are still continuing to search for survivors and provide relief to the injured, some horrific facts revealed by survivors' testimonies began to surface and refer to hidden parties. , may have contributed to the deepening of the disaster, either directly or indirectly.

Perhaps the reality of what happened in the Amazon warehouse in Illinois and the candle factory in Kentucky, which had witnessed during the past days, a large number of injuries and deaths due to the hurricane, is one of the evidence of “inhumanity” and “persecution” that the surviving workers later uncovered.

Profit takes precedence over safety of workers

The local authorities in the US state of Kentucky announced that dozens of people have died as a result of devastating tornadoes, during the past few days. Among the victims were candle factory workers.

According to preliminary figures, about 6 workers died in the factory, while rescue teams managed to rescue more than 40 people out of about 110 who are still stuck, and it is not known if they are still alive.

"It would be a miracle to find anyone else alive," said Kentucky Governor Andy Basher.

And the candle factory in Kentucky was not the only one that lost its workers during the hurricane, as reports from local authorities also confirmed the death of about 6 workers at the Amazon warehouse in Illinois.

These numbers raised the astonishment and questions of many about the reason for the workers' presence in these institutions at the moment of a devastating and deadly hurricane.

Some of the surviving factory workers, speaking to local and foreign newspapers, confirmed that they had been forced to stay at work and had been ordered not to leave. Kentucky candle factory managers threatened their employees with firing if they left, and Amazon's warehouse prevented workers from leaving.

And their threat of dismissal and the decision to prevent them from leaving was not only the worst, as the workers were forced, according to their testimony, to remain in facilities that also lack occupational safety procedures. So their survival is a risk in order to keep their job.

And the British newspaper, “The Guardian”, considered that the absence of a union to protect employees and workers in these facilities, has extended the hands of employers to further persecution, and prompted workers, in return, to fear standing up to managers who asked them to stay and risk their lives.

According to the newspaper, Amazon, like many American companies, has in turn fought the existence of these unions, was involved in spying on its workers and hired expensive anti-union advisers, as it knows that these structures can threaten its interests, and force it to abide by much. Of the commitments towards its employees and workers, in the words of the Guardian.

Activists pointed out that these institutions outweigh their interests and the language of profit over the safety and interests of their employees. As a company like Amazon, or the candle factory, could have simply taken the temporary closure decision, when the deadly hurricane approached, but the accumulation of wealth for their owners and their fear of reducing their billions in profits, made them overlook the lives of simple people and gamble with their safety, throwing them to the wind.

Humanitarian disaster

The US authorities do not hide their fears of a further increase in victims of hurricanes that swept a number of US states during the past few days, especially Kentucky, which has become a disaster-stricken state.

US President Joe Biden described the recent hurricanes as one of the most powerful the United States has ever known. And he pledged to help the federal government for these affected areas and to harness all possibilities for that.

Meanwhile, a state of emergency was declared, and shelters were opened to receive displaced people whose homes were damaged. Meanwhile, rescue teams are still trying to search for more survivors, amid the government's desperation for the death toll to rise further.

Speaking about the city's damage and casualties, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said: "The loss of life at the Mayfield Candle Factory could exceed the losses of any hurricane in one location in the state's history."

"It is a very painful situation" at the factory, he added, as the difficulties of searching in the collapsed building were exacerbated by the barrels from which a corrosive liquid had leaked.