Tennessee City, Wastewater Operator Dismissed From Lawsuit

The city of Gatlinburg and its wastewater operator have been dropped from a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the families of two workers who were killed when a wall collapsed.

The families John Eslinger and Don Storey filed suit after the two were killed April 5, 2011, when a basin wall collapsed on them at the Gatlinburg Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The plaintiffs’ attorney, Bob Pryor, told the Knoxville News Sentinel that his clients asked the judge to dismiss the claims against the city and plant operator Veolia Water North America. The judge signed the order on Monday.

The order says the lawsuit remains against two other defendants: Crowder Construction Company of Charlotte, North Carolina, and Vaughn and Melton Consulting Engineers of Middlesboro, Kentucky.