Impact Plastics and its CEO, Gerald O'Connor, have been sued by the family of one of its Tennessee employees who was killed by catastrophic flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. The wrongful death lawsuit claims that workers were forced to stay at their posts even when managers knew conditions were growing dangerous.

.... it wasn't until water had flooded the plant's parking lot and the power went out that managers sent workers home.

"While most businesses in the area shut down to protect their employees, Impact Plastics and Mr. O'Connor chose profit," the lawsuit claims.

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The 28-page lawsuit, filed Monday, alleges that Impact Plastics didn't have an emergency action plan, even though the factory was located in a federally-designated flood plain.

The lawsuit claims that while local schools and other businesses announced closures because of Hurricane Helene, Impact Plastics instructed its employees to report to work because the company "wanted to meet order deadlines."

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O'Connor's attorney did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment Tuesday.

The lawsuit goes on to claim that senior management, including O'Connor, had "stealthily exited the building" ...

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The lawsuit alleges that Impact Plastics and O'Connor's actions represent a "gross deviation from the standard of care that an ordinary person would exercise under all the circumstances."

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Impact Plastics has maintained that it monitored weather conditions on Sept. 27 and that managers dismissed employees "when water began to cover the parking lot and the adjacent service road, and the plant lost power."

Meanwhile, O'Connor has said no employees were forced to keep working and they were evacuated at least 45 minutes before the massive force of the flood hit the industrial park.