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Second worker sues C6-Zero over injuries from 2022 blast
Lawsuit also names LS2 Group, consulting firm that vouched for C6-Zero before the explosion
A second worker injured in a 2022 explosion at a Marengo plant is suing the company, C6-Zero, and other defendants, including a politically-connected consulting firm that vouched for the company with state regulators.
Cody and Taylar Blasberg, of Williamsburg, claim in the lawsuit filed Feb. 5 in Iowa County that C6-Zero’s negligence caused the Dec. 8, 2022, blast that injured Cody Blasberg, a contractor hired to repair a conveyor belt at the plant, where C6-Zero founder Howard Brand III was trying to dissolve shingles into sand, oil and fiberglass.
The explosion and fire injured nine employees, caused an evacuation of nearby houses and polluted soil and water.
C6-Zero has not filed a response yet to the lawsuit.
Instructed to work on the belt while it was running “to avoid a shutdown,” Blasberg was standing in the conveyor’s open hatch when flammable vapors ignited, the suit states. He was severely burned and put on a ventilator for some time after the fire, according to a GoFundMe page.
“Defendants knew or should have known that C6-Zero’s system for recycling asphalt shingles was dangerous,” the suit states. “By design, the system employed toxic chemicals and oils that emitted vapors that could explode with a spark.”
C6-Zero not only didn’t provide employees a safe place to work, the suit alleges, but after the explosion did not report injuries, including “an inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye as a result of a work-related incident to OSHA within 24 hours.”
Iowa OSHA originally found 15 serious violations at the plant, each carrying a $8,701 penalty, for a total $130,515. The agency and C6-Zero reached a settlement May 26 that the company would pay $95,711 by June 19, 2023.
C6-Zero has not paid the fine, despite a court order.
The Blasbergs, in their suit, also name as defendants other companies Brand has started in connection with his attempts across the country to recycle shingles.
The Blasbergs’ lawsuit alleges negligence by Heartland Crush, which owned the building where C6-Zero was operating, and the LS2 Group, a Des Moines-based public relations and lobbying firm.
LS2 and its partner, Jeff Boeyink, misrepresented the nature of C6-Zero’s manufacturing process and withheld information about the process, the lawsuit claims.
Boeyink, who was then-Gov. Terry Branstad’s chief of staff from 2010 to 2013, wrote to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and Marengo officials at least 10 times on behalf of C6-Zero to answer questions, allay concerns and invite officials to tour the site, according to emails obtained by The Gazette.
Last spring, Tama County man Kelly Regenold sued C6-Zero Iowa, C6-Zero Holdings and Heartland Crush for injuries he received during the Marengo explosion.
“The explosion blew Plaintiff off a ladder and across the floor of the building. The subsequent fire destroyed the building and Plaintiff barely escaped with his life,” the lawsuit states. “Plaintiff was taken by ambulance to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics where he was admitted for severe burns over 30 to 39% of his body, plus other injuries caused by the explosion and fire.”
C6-Zero has denied the allegations in Regenold’s lawsuit. A jury trial is set for Feb. 11, 2025.
C6-Zero timeline
Dec. 3, 2020: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sends a letter to C6-Zero requesting information about hazardous wastes that may be involved in the company’s plan to recycle used shingles.
Dec. 17, 2020: EPA Region 8, based in Denver, contacts Region 7, based in Kansas City and overseeing Iowa, about C6-Zero and affiliated companies owned by Howard C. Brand III.
Jan. 6, 2021: EPA shares with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources correspondence with the Criminal Enforcement Counsel of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality about C6-Zero. Based on these conversations, Iowa DNR focuses on whether C6-Zero is stockpiling shingles in Marengo.
April 30, 2021: Authorities arrest Brand in a traffic stop at C6-Zero based on a warrant for his arrest on criminal charges in Bexar County, Texas, for theft and illegal dumping.
May 5, 2021: Brand is released from custody after Texas decides they no longer want to extradite Brand.
May 2021: Iowa DNR staff tour the Marengo site and talk with C6-Zero officials by phone. Founder Brand tells the department the company has a “clean bill of health” in Texas, Louisiana, and Colorado. No shingles are observed at the Marengo building.
June-December 2021: Iowa DNR tries to hold permitting meeting with C6-Zero, which says it is not yet operational. Company cancels September 2021 meeting. Iowa DNR staff drive by facility and do not see stored shingles outside.
Jan. 27, 2022: Brand pays restitution in Texas and theft and illegal dumping charges are dismissed.
April 7, 2022: C6-Zero staff refuse to allow Iowa DNR officials to inspect the facility.
May 24, 2022: Jeff Boeyink, former chief of staff to Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, emails Iowa DNR to say the consultant will be helping C6-Zero “navigate the regulatory environment of Iowa.”
May 26, 2022: Iowa DNR meets with C6-Zero about multiple environmental concerns at the site, which still is not permitted.
July 1, 2022: C6-Zero legal counsel tells the state C6-Zero isn’t subject to regulation, despite expectations the company would process 800 tons of shingles per day.
Oct. 25, 2022: A small fire occurs at the C6-Zero site.
Nov. 9, 2022: Iowa DNR staff tour C6-Zero site, but company halts tour midway and won’t let state regulators see part of the facility. Iowa DNR tells C6-Zero that to be a legitimate recycler, the company has to prove someone is willing to buy the end product. No documentation is provided.
Dec. 8, 2022: A blast and fire at the C6-Zero injures up to 15 employees and causes an evacuation of nearby houses. More than 20 fire departments come to help extinguish the blaze.
Dec. 15, 2022: Iowa DNR issues emergency order requiring C6-Zero to stabilize facility and make a plan to clean up site.
Dec. 31, 2022: C6-Zero misses deadline to file environmental site assessment plan.
Jan. 3, 2023: EcoSource, a Des Moines-area company, filed the plan on behalf of C6-Zero. Company says cleanup, if started now, would take until March 2023.
Jan. 4, 2023: Iowa DNR refers C6-Zero case to the Iowa Attorney General, which has the authority to pursue larger penalties, including fines and criminal prosecution.
May 2023: C6-Zero signs settlement agreeing to pay $95,711 for 15 serious workplace safety violations that led to the fire.
June 2023: C6-Zero fails to pay fine to Iowa OSHA.
Feb. 5: Iowa DNR Director Kayla Lyon tells lawmakers C6-Zero site still not completely cleaned up.
Sources: Iowa Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, court records.
Comments: (319) 339-3157; erin.jordan@thegazette.com
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