L&I honors workers who died from job-related injuries, illnesses, including many from the Tri-Cities

Nearly 20 workers with ties to the Tri-Cities were honored when the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries held a Workers’ Memorial Day service on April 27.  

The agency added 129 people to the list of 2,000-plus workers whose deaths were tied to their jobs. Some died recently while others died years ago but only were recently added. 

The list of local workers includes several with connections to the Hanford nuclear site whose deaths were attributed to chemical exposure, plus a corrections worker who died from Covid-19, a construction worker who died in a fall, and a meat processor who died from blunt force trauma. 

The list also includes Instacart shopper Justin R. Krumbah, who died in the shooting on Feb. 7, 2022, at the Richland Fred Meyer grocery store. 

Local workers honored included: 

• Dale V. Archer, 60, of Oregon, an engineering for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, died Feb. 11, 1999, from chemical exposure.
• Luis G. Bastian Flores, 34, of Franklin County, a construction worker for Gutter Girl, died Sept. 20, 2022, in a fall. 
• Gregory A. Bates, 38, of Benton County, a U.S. Department of Energy firefighter, died March 30, 2000, from chemical exposure.
• Karen M. Brown, 47, of Benton County, a correctional booking officer at the Yakima County jail, died April 7, 2022, of Covid-19.
• Lois A. Bumgarner, 75, of Kennewick, an administrative assistant for the U.S. Department of Energy, died June 21, 2021, from chemical exposure.
• Alvin H. Keck, 64, of Richland, a piping engineer with Bechtel National, died March 23, 2021, from chemical exposure.
• Leland H. Knapp III, 64, of Benton County, a U.S. Department of Energy painter, died Aug. 1, 2022, from chemical exposure.
• Justin R. Krumbah, 38, of Benton County, an Instacart shopper, died Feb. 7, 2022, in a shooting at a Richland grocery store.
• Gerald L. Massengale, 58, of Benton County, an insulator for the U.S. Department of Energy, died March 25, 2022, from chemical exposure.
• Amos Milan Nieblas, 36, of Franklin County, a meat processor at Royal Pack LLC, died Dec. 4, 2022, of blunt force trauma.
• Pete E. Orgill, 62, of Yakima County, a laborer for the U.S. Department of Energy, died March 14, 2015, from chemical exposure.
• Mauro Partida, 61, of Franklin County, a law enforcement officer with the U.S. Department of Energy, died June 29, 2013, from chemical exposure.
• Isidoro Pérez Mata Jr., 64, of Benton County, a utilities operator for CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation, died March 14, 2021, from chemical exposure.
• David C. Perkins, 45, of Benton County, a firefighter for the U.S. Department of Energy, died May 21, 2022, from chemical exposure.
• James L. Plaisted, 68, of Benton County, a scheduler/planner for the U.S. Department of Energy, died Feb. 27, 2020, from chemical exposure.
• Patrick J. Price, 65, of Benton County, a truck driver for the U.S. Department of Energy, died May 26, 2021, from chemical exposure.
• Barry L. Sharer, 69, of Benton County, an operations manager for the U.S. Department of Energy, died Nov. 2, 2015, from chemical exposure.
• Óscar J. Valero, 60, of Franklin County, a process operator for Mission Support Alliance LLC, died Sept. 11, 2022, from chemical exposure.