Worker killed by flying equipment at southeast Houston plant: Lawsuit

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- It was normal for Garrick Newell to be away from his wife, daughter, and step-daughter for weeks at a time while he was working, according to his family's attorneys, Scott Armstrong and Mo Aziz.

But in February, 28-year-old Newell left his home in east Texas and never went back. Newell was killed at a chemical plant in Houston two months ago.

"This whole thing could have been avoided," Aziz said.

Newell was working as a contractor at TPC Group's facility in southeast Houston on Feb. 7.

Attorneys for Newell's surviving family members said he was called in to help remove a bellhead from a boilermaker, which is a cap on the piece of equipment.

"This piece of equipment, over 1,000 pounds, flew around 15 feet and struck him," Aziz said.

In the lawsuit filed at the end of February, attorneys for Newell's widow and children call the operation he performed "unsafe" and say it was performed at the "specific direction and control of TPC Group."

Since Newell's death, the attorneys said they were able to do an on-site investigation.

"Nothing happens at these plants without the authority and permission of the owner, of the operator," Armstrong said.

The attorneys also allege in the suit that the company failed to "properly maintain equipment," leading to the deadly incident.

TPC might sound familiar to people who have lived in southeast Texas for a few years.

The day before Thanksgiving in 2019, there were three explosions at the TPC facility in Port Neches, including one that was captured by an ABC13 photographer on the scene.

Three people were hurt, and residents were forced to evacuate.

Fires at the facility burned for more than a month, according to a report by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

The federal agency determined that $153 million in damage was done outside the facility.

In the CSB's analysis, they determined the company failed to identify problem areas where the dangerous substance involved in the explosion might build up and did not have an "effective" safety management system in place related to interruptions in procedures.

ABC13 reached out to TPC with a list of questions and they told us they don't comment on pending litigation and they have not filed anything in court in response to the lawsuit.