(Undated) -- A contractor will have to pay a 13-thousand dollar penalty to resolve a lawsuit after two workers were killed in Pella. The Iowa Attorney General's Office filed an "Iowa One Call" lawsuit against a North Carolina Contractor (MCS). Fiber optic installers employed by MCS struck an electrical line with a jackhammer in August of 2020, resulting in the electrocution of two employees and the injury of a third. The state says other excavations damaged natural gas pipelines and a telecommunications line. The state says the company failed six times to exercise due care when excavating in Pella. The company (MCS) admits fault, has agreed to pay the penalties, and has agreed not to violate Iowa's One Call law in the future. Both men who died were from Virginia.
The maximum penalty allowed under the One Call law is $10,000 for each day of violations involving natural gas pipelines, and $1,000 for each day of violations involving other underground lines.
MCS agreed to resolve the matter with a consent decree, wherein the company admitted to the violations and agreed to pay a $10,000 civil penalty in addition to injunctive relief prohibiting future violations.
Separately, the Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued several citations to MCS. The company paid a $12,250 penalty as a result
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