The federal government is fining a bridge-painting company from Pevely almost $2.4 million for 41 federal safety violations. The fines against Thomas Industrial Coatings stem from the fatal falls of two employees from the same Kansas City bridge this year. A few months earlier, a third employee of Thomas Industrial Coatings fell from a bridge over the Mississippi River at St. Louis and died. That earlier case brought a fine of more than $64,000 that the company is contesting. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says 33 of the 41 allegations in the later two cases are considered “willful” violations and eight others are considered “serious.”
