Ronald Silver’s family demands answers one month after DPW employee dies on the job due to heat

By Tommie Clark

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    BALTIMORE, Maryland (WBAL) — Ronald Silver’s family continues to demand answers from Baltimore City one month since a Department of Public Works employee died on the job from the heat.

Silver’s family spoke Monday, seeking to know what protocol was in place to protect employees like him, and what went wrong the day he died.

“We deserve answers. This was someone that was stolen from our lives at the hands of Baltimore City, who refuses to give us answers as we have asked for on a daily basis,” said Silver’s aunt, LaTonya Mountain.

Silver was a sanitation worker who was a father of five children in his mid-30s.

“My son was everything to us, everything to us,” said Silver’s mother, Faith Johnson.

Maryland Occupational Safety and Health, Baltimore police and a city-hired law firm are looking into the death. Family attorney Thiru Vignarajah announced Monday that they’ve hired a private investigator.

“If we don’t hear answers from public officials soon, it is incumbent upon us to share with the public what we have learned through our own private investigation,” Vignarajah said. “Here we are a month later with the family largely knowing no more than it did in the days immediately after Ronnie’s death.”

The family has also requested the inspector general to investigate what led up to Silver’s death, after the office called some conditions at DPW facilities “dangerous” and “intolerable” with the hot summer weather in a July report. Silver died over a week after the report’s release.

The Department of Public Works sent a statement to 11 News in response to Monday’s news conference, saying:

“The Department of Public Works (DPW) is committed to addressing the concerns of Mr. Silver’s family as state and local investigations into his death continue. Our priority is to fully cooperate with all inquiries while respecting the investigative process. “We continue to await the findings of the investigations and remain steadfast in upholding that process. Meanwhile, the city is conducting a review of its policies, practices and procedures with the assistance of a third-party firm. This review will establish safety and health standards for DPW employees around heat safety. “Importantly, the work will be based on discussions with frontline DPW workers, and key stakeholders, including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the City Union of Baltimore (CUB), and members of the City Council. Recommendations will be provided, which the city will review and decide on a comprehensive implementation.”

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