Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 7-18-17

Features
TECO Relief Fund Created To Benefit Families Of Burn Victims
Issue Of Confederate Statue To Be Revisited
LES MILLER, JR. Hillsborough County Commissioner
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Last month, during a meeting of the Hillsborough County Commissioners, Commissioner Les Miller, Jr., made a motion to remove a Confederate Statue on County property in front of the old Hillsborough County Courthouse. His mo- tion was defeated by a 4-3 vote. The Commissioners op- posing the motion were Chairman Stacy White, Victor Crist, Ken Hagan, and Sandra Murman.
All four Commissioners will seek re-election in 2018. Chairman White fur- ther lobbied for a rule that would prevent the removal of any “war monuments” in Hillsborough County. When contacted by the Sentinel, Chairman White declined to comment referring this re- porter to the minutes of the
meeting.
Commissioners Pat Kemp and Al Higgin- botham supported Com- missioner Miller.
The vote launched an out- pouring of controversy from members of the community. It has been the source of sev- eral “Letters To The Edi- tor” published by the Sentinel and may result in the filing of a lawsuit.
Commissioner Miller stated that he intends to approach the issue again during the regular meet-
ing on Wednesday, July 19th.
MAYOR BOB BUCKHORN
However, last week,
Commissioner
Crist seems to have changed his mind about the contro- versial statue. He now says it is likely the statue will be moved.
In an article printed in the Tampa Bay Times, Commissioner Crist was quoted as saying, “We’re going to find a site to relocate it, one that is off the beaten trail and is in a location where if you don’t want to see it, you don’t have to. But if you do want to see it, you can certainly find it.”
Commissioner Crist
had stated that the statue could be placed in either Oaklawn Cemetery or Wood- lawn Cemetery.
After the controversial vote, Mayor Bob Buck- horn said, “There is no honor in treason and there is no valor in enslaving people because of their race. That statue represents the worst of humanity, not the Tampa we aspire to be. This decision doesn’t speak for our city or the people that I represent.”
When contacted by the Sentinel pertaining to relo- cating the statue to either of two cemeteries, Mayor Buckhorn said, “As long as I’m Mayor, there will not be a Confederate statue on any city-owned property.”
Commissioner Crist
further stated in the article that he would not be able to
Victor
CONFEDERATE STATUE ... Erected in 1911 by United Daughters of the Confederacy
attend the meeting on Wednesday and that he would ask that the vote be delayed.
Commissioner Miller
said, “I’m not going to delay the vote. I’m going to make a motion that we give it back to the Daughters of the Confed- eracy and store it until they can find a place to put it.
“Hillsborough County is supposed to be one of the most progressive counties in the country. Instead, we are one of the most hick towns in the country.”
Commissioner Miller
said the recipient of the statue must be a not-for- profit agency that receives the statue. He suggested giv- ing it to the United Daugh- ters of the Confederacy.
Any comments individu- als would like to make about the statue must be made dur- ing the public speaking seg- ment of the meeting. They will not be able to speak at the time of the discussion,
Commissioner
said.
Miller
CHRISTOPHER IRVIN
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On June 29th, shortly after 4 p.m., an industrial accident occurred at the Tampa Elec- tric Company’s Big Ben Plant. TECO Engineer Michael McCort, 60, and Christo- pher Irvin, Crew Supervisor for Gaffin Industries, 40, died at the scene.
Four others: Antonio Navarrete, 21, of Wimauma; Armando J. Perez, 56, of Wimauma, Gary Marine, Jr., 32, of Tampa; and his stepfather, Frank Lee Jones, 55, also of Tampa, were all admitted to Tampa General Hospital after the ac- cident with life-threatening injuries.
Antonio Navarrete, a BRACE employee, and Frank Lee Jones, a Gaffin Indus- tries employee, have also died as a result of their injuries.
Last Thursday, a spokesperson for TECO said the company has worked with the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay to establish a charitable fund to assist the families affected by the inci- dent.
Gordon Gillette, Presi- dent and CEO of Tampa Elec- tric Company said, “We have seen such an incredible out- pouring of support from our employees and the commu- nity. This fund will directly help the families touched by this tragic incident.”
TECO provided an initial
ANTONIO NAVARRETE
FRANK LEE JONES
contribution to open the TECO Family Relief Fund and will cover administrative charges. The affected families will receive 100% of all subse- quent donations. Additionally, TECO will match contribu- tions.
Officials said the accident occurred after the employees were attempting unblock a tank containing slag, a bi- product of the coal used to make electricity. The slag gushed from a tank onto the workers, causing severe burns. The slag resembles lava from a volcano and can reach a temperature of 1,000 de- grees.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is continuing its in- vestigation into the deadly in- cident. It could take several weeks before the findings are known and made public.
Anyone wishing to make a donation to the fund can visit the website at www.cftam- pabay.org/tecofamilyrelief.
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