“I never thought I’d see something like this, especially in the mountains,” said Rocio Reynoso, a junior at ETSU and Erwin, Tennessee, resident whose family has been impacted due to the Hurricane Helene flooding. “It just wasn’t something I think I was prepared for, or anyone was prepared for.”

On Friday, Sept. 27, Reynoso went to work at 8:30 a.m. and opened up the store alone. The store lost power and cell service at 10:30 a.m., and Reynoso was sent home by 11 a.m. When Reynoso returned home, her house had neither power nor cell service.

At 3 p.m. Reynoso and her mother went to Johnson City for Reynoso’s hair appointment and found out about a family member missing. “My mom starts looking at her phone, and I just see her kind of break down,” said Reynoso.

Photo of missing Rose Maria Andrade Reynoso. (Contributed/The Reynoso Family)

That afternoon, Reynoso’s mother found out her cousin, Rose Maria Andrade Reynoso, had been missing along with others who were working at Impact Plastics that day.

Impact Plastics is a plastic manufacturer located in the Riverview Industrial Park in Erwin. Impact Plastics released a statement saying they dismissed workers when the plant lost power, and waters began to cover the parking lot. However, workers from that day say they were told they could not leave when they asked to evacuate.

Six factory workers were reported dead or missing on Friday, Sept. 27. Reynoso shared that her family is currently in the denial stage surrounding Rose Maria’s disappearance. “I don’t think they have really processed what is going on, I think from where we still don’t know anything,” said Reynoso.

Reynoso’s family spent the weekend looking for Rose Maria, especially her husband. “He went out hoping to see her, he was yelling her name, nothing,” said Reynoso.

Reynoso shared that Impact Plastics has not been helpful. “They haven’t been telling us information,” said Reynoso. “We don’t know anything. We’re just kind of here. It’s like a waiting game.”

An impactful moment for Reynoso has been seeing how the community has rallied together to look for the missing workers. “We really are as tight knit as I thought we were,” said Reynoso.

Looking forward, Reynoso hopes that individuals and families who were impacted by Impact Plastics are taken care of. “I’m holding on to hope that justice will be made for them,” said Reynoso. “If the workers were told not to come, not to go into work that that day, they would still be here.”

At this time, Reynoso is being a support system for her family. “I feel like if I’m away from my family, I’m scared something is going to happen and I’m not going to be here,” said Reynoso. “My parents, my family, they only speak Spanish and so I have been translating what the articles are saying, what the news people are saying.”

As of Wednesday, Oct. 2, 10:50 a.m., Rose Maria has not been found. GoFundMe donations have been set up for the families of the missing workers.

ETSU students or community members who want to help those impacted by the flooding are encouraged to visit the ETSU Response website, https://www.etsu.edu/response/.

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