What This Factory Worker Sent His Daughter Is Too Intense to Look Away From!

The grieving family of Johnny Peterson, a factory worker hailed as a hero, is speaking out after he tragically lost his life saving others from deadly floodwaters. Peterson, a father of four, was among five workers who died when the truck they used to escape was overwhelmed by the powerful floodwaters caused by Hurricane Helene on September 27, in Erwin, Tennessee.

Peterson, 55, had worked at Impact Plastics for 35 years. In the final moments before his death, he sent a harrowing video to his daughter, Alexa Peterson, showing brown floodwaters crashing through the factory. The video reveals the chaos inside, as employees scrambled to flee the facility. His daughter shared the footage, along with her frustration, noting that the evacuation had allegedly been delayed by plant management, who had advised workers not to leave immediately.

“The entire situation is just so infuriating. I am angry,” Alexa told WSMV-TV. Her father’s video, shot from the semitruck he and his coworkers used to try and escape, shows the devastating scene: vehicles and debris being swept away by the floodwaters, which were nearly five feet high, submerging streets and smashing through windows.

According to Alexa, her father had been texting her on that final day, expressing frustration that the plant had remained open despite the dangerous weather. Alexa said her father told her that Impact Plastics had still not shut down operations by that morning, putting workers in danger. Her anger extended to the company’s founder, Gerald O’Connor, who claimed in a statement that he was one of the last people to leave the plant.

“After checking to make sure everyone was out of our plant and rescuing important files, I was one of the last people to leave,” O’Connor said in a video message. He added, “The flood of September 27th took from our Impact Plastics family some great employees. One was a personal friend of more than 30 years of working together.”

Alexa pushed back against O’Connor’s statements, expressing doubt about the closeness of her father’s relationship with him. “I don’t think Dad considered him a friend,” she said. “I think he considered him a boss.” She went on to say, “I personally would not be treating my friend or my deceased friend’s family the way Impact has been treating everyone.”

Alexa also shared that O’Connor had called her family after the incident, offering condolences but also emphasizing that Johnny had chosen to stay behind to help others. “He said he was sorry to hear dad died and that he wanted me to know dad was there helping people and that dad did not leave with them when he had the opportunity to,” she explained. Alexa believes her father could not have lived with himself if he had left his coworkers behind.

A comment left on Johnny’s obituary reflected his heroic actions. “I am here today because of Johnny,” the comment read. “We were trapped in the building, and Johnny found us a way out.” Some of the workers who were in the truck with Johnny were later rescued by a National Guard helicopter. Tragically, Johnny’s body was discovered two days later, on September 29.

Attorney Alex Little, who represents the Peterson family, said workers were abandoned to deal with the dangerous conditions on their own. “What we are starting to find out is that a group of management, which is a family-owned company, they all kind of left out one way, the back,” Little said to WSMV-TV.

Johnny leaves behind four children, the youngest of whom is only 15 years old. His family continues to grapple with the immense loss of their father and the circumstances that led to his death.