TOLEDO, Ohio — Brothers Ben and Max Morrissey were killed in an Oregon refinery fire seven months ago. On Friday, as the refinery, now called the Cenovus Toledo Refinery, reopens in phases, the local United Steelworkers Union the brothers were members of honored them and others who have lost their lives on the job.
"People should go to work and expect to go home the same way they went to work," Jim Witt, the president of USW 1-346, said at the Workers' Memorial Day event at the union hall in east Toledo.
The families of the Morrissey brothers received flags flown over the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio).
"We miss Ben and Max every day," Witt said. "They were two of our members. Unfortunately, their careers were cut short in an accident that shouldn't have happened,"
The USW members said the message of the memorial is that while they will continue to mourn the ones they have lost, everyone has to commit to standing against unsafe work conditions.
In March, the refinery's previous owner, BP Products North America, was cited for "serious violations" and proposed over $150,000 in fines after the Occupational Safety and Health Administration found training and operational deficiencies. BP is contesting the violations.
Cenovus Energy, the company that purchased BP's remaining stake in the refinery and assumed operatorship, said the company stands with the union to honor Ben and Max.
"We are also very committed to safe reliable operations, so we are here to stand with the union that represents the workers at the refinery to ensure that this type of incident doesn't happen again," Cenovus Executive Vice President, Downstream, Keith Chiasson, said.
Cenovus said the refinery's phased reopening is expected to finish in May.
Witt, said more than 100 people have died in Ohio Refinery accidents within the last year.