Company fined in St. Paul storm sewer deaths
A construction company has agreed to pay $28,000 for violating state labor laws in the deaths of two workers who drowned when a flash flood swept a storm sewer in St. Paul.
Lametti & Sons Inc., of Hugo, reached a settlement with the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which reduced five 'willful' violations to two, less serious infractions. The company initially faced $106,600 in fines.
Twenty-three-year-old Dave Yasis of Maplewood and 32-year-old Joseph Harlow of Plainview were working in the storm sewer in July 2007 when they were swept into the Mississippi River.
A wrongful-death lawsuit, filed by Yasis' family, is pending in Ramsey County District Court. A similar lawsuit by Harlow's relatives was settled for an undisclosed amount.
Information from: [[link:http://www.twincities.com type:ext text:St. Paul Pioneer Press]]
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