For 16th Anniversary of Kingston Coal Ash Spill, Communities Honor Cleanup Workers

KINGSTON, Tenn. - For the 16th anniversary of the devastating Kingston Coal Ash Spill, families and allies of cleanup workers, including the Sierra Club and Appalachian Voices, set up billboards commemorating the heroic cleanup workers whose health has been impacted by the exposure to coal ash. 

Following the coal ash spill on December 22, 2008, when 1.1 billion U.S. gallons of coal ash poured into Emory River, Clinch River, and nearby communities like Swan Pond, cleanup workers worked tirelessly to address the massive destruction caused by the spill. Workers were denied personal protective equipment, and were exposed to high levels of chemicals present in coal ash. More than 220 of the disaster’s cleanup workers have come forward with sicknesses like lung diseases and cancers, and over 60 have died. 

To commemorate this anniversary, families and allies of the workers issued the following statements:

“The anniversary of the devastating coal ash spill in Kingston is a painful reminder of the dangers that coal pollution poses to our communities, our environment, and the health of our loved ones. It is also an opportunity to honor the incredible resilience and determination of the cleanup workers who bravely stepped up to the frontlines of the recovery efforts to ensure the wellbeing of the rest of our community,” said Bonnie Swinford, Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign Organizing Strategist.  “This anniversary is also a reminder that our work is far from over. We must keep pushing for a future free of dangerous coal and fossil fuels. We can not allow large corporations to continue threatening the health and livelihoods of our community, and we will continue our fight for a cleaner, safer future for the next generation."

“The men and women who unselfishly answered the call to clean up the toxic Kingston coal ash spill working unprotected are standard-bearers for the working class. They are heroes. We mourn the lives of those who have passed on and express gratitude to the ones who remain,” said Janie Clark, widow of Kingston Coal Ash cleanup worker Ansol Clark.

“The 16th anniversary of Kingston coal workers is approaching; the billboards will be shown as a symbol of life and death, a symbol for remembering the workers and their families. A symbol of how toxic coal ashes harm the body of the people. I pray for every family this holiday season,” said Betty Johnson, widow of Kingston Coal Ash cleanup worker Tommy Johnson.

“My heart goes out to the workers, past and those still working in hazardous cleanup today. We don’t know if workers today are being protected when working in coal ash. I pray the men and women today working in coal ash and nearby communities are being protected. My heart goes out to everyone throughout the decades who have become sick from working in coal ash and never knew that they were being exposed to dangerous substances.” said Julie Bledsoe, wife of Kingston Coal Ash cleanup worker Ron Bledsoe. 

“It’s been 16 years since TVA’s Kingston Coal Ash Spill, the biggest industrial spill in U.S. history. For the cleanup workers, hundreds of whom are sick, this disaster is ongoing. We honor the workers who responded to the spill, the families who have lost loved ones, and those caring for workers who are sick. While we remember and mark this anniversary, we continue to fight for no other community to suffer what they did,” said Gabi Lichtenstein, Tennessee Energy Democracy Field Coordinator for Appalachian Voices.

Billboard Locations:

• Billboard 1: US 70 (Harriman, TN), Week of Dec. 16 – Jan. 12
• Billboard 2: I-40 (Oak Ridge, TN), Week of Dec. 16 – Jan. 12
• Billboard 3: US 70 (Kingston, TN), Week of Dec. 16 – Jan. 12