Investigation Questions School Bus Garage's Efforts to Protect Employees From COVID-19

Fayette County, (WorkersCompensation.com)-The Miles Point school bus garage in Fayette County is under review by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration after 19 workers tested positive for Coronavirus, including one who died.

According to a report in the OSHA database, on April 10, an investigation opened on the employer after being notified of the death. 

“This inspection is on-going and could take up to 6 months to complete,” stated Chief of Staff for the Kentucky Labor Cabinet, Marjorie Arnold, in a media release. “The Kentucky Labor Cabinet, including the Division of Occupational Safety and Health Compliance, has taken an active role in working with the Governor’s Office and other state and local enforcement personnel throughout the state to help protect the working men and women of the Commonwealth.”

As of last week, a total of 38 Fayette County residents had tested posted positive for COVID-19, and, including 25 who are employed with the Fayette County Public Schools transportation staff.  A spokesperson for the Lexington Fayette County Health Department has stated that in addition to the 19 employees from The Miles Point bus garage, the other six workers came from Liberty Road school bus garage.

Eugenia Higgins Weather was a bus driver who passed away on April 4 from the deadly virus, from the Miles Point bus garage. Her daughter, Shacora Faulkner, who’s also a bus driver, did not feel that there were adequate precautionary measures taken with the employees of the school bus garage, nor did she think district officials notified employees of exposure quickly enough.

Faulkner, in a statement to media, noted, “Fayette County did not protect us. They did not inform us. Honestly, I feel like they did not care about us. They waited until after everything had blown up to actually contact employees and tell us to stay on quarantine.”

Sarah George, another employee who tested positive, was hospitalized for a month after becoming seriously ill. She told the media she “knew something” about numerous colleagues of hers testing “positive,” “but they didn’t let us know.” Both the chairwoman and the Fayette County School’s spokesperson, however, have continually said that the district did everything they could to prevent the spread of COVID-19 amongst its workers.

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