The Baltimore Department of Public Works (DPW) is under scrutiny as workers protested outside City Hall Friday following the death of a worker on November 8.

Timothy Cartwell, a trash collector at Reedbird Sanitation Yard, died after being pinned between a utility pole and a garbage truck in a West Baltimore alley.

Two sources with direct knowledge who were not authorized to speak due to the ongoing investigation said The Baltimore Banner this week, the death was believed to be the result of “driver error.”

Cartwell’s death echoes security concerns raised after the death of Ronald Silveranother DPW worker died in August after overheating on the job.

The families of Cartwell and Silver joined the protest to call for change and answers from Baltimore’s leaders.

“Timmy,” as Cartwell’s family members call him, served the city for nearly two decades.

His relatives said they still knew very little about the circumstances of his death. They believe this could have been avoided.

“We’ll be here for each other,” said Shantae Carroll, Timothy Cartwell’s sister-in-law.

Both families were united in their grief and in their demands for accountability from city leaders.

“We, the family, and I think I can speak for everyone behind me, want justice,” Carroll said.

“My brother-in-law wasn’t just a garbage collector. My brother-in-law was a man of courage, of good deeds, of love, of support, of generosity,” continued his sister-in-law, speaking on behalf of the family. “He was kind. He was gentle and he was a man who stood up for what was right.

The city is committed to resolving the issues.

“None of us know exactly what happened, except for those who were there,” said Marvin “Doc” Cheatham, former president of the Baltimore city branch of the NAACP. “And that’s one of the things that needs to be done: We need to find out what exactly happened.”

The family questioned whether DPW workers received proper training.

This follows an independent investigation into the agency that found a lack of safety policies and worker training following the collapse of Silver and died in the heat last August.

The report also reveals retaliation against employees who speak out about unsafe conditions.

“I’ve been called to that mic too many times. I’m fed up,” said Thiru Vignarajah, a lawyer representing the Silver family. “…Our workers – the people we employ – find themselves in savage and inhumane conditions, not every once in a while, not in an isolated accident – ​​but literally every day.

Shantae Carroll said she didn’t want her brother-in-law’s life to be forgotten.

“They’re doing an act for us, the people of Baltimore, so let’s do an act (for) them as workers who have done us justice, let’s do them justice,” Carroll said. “I don’t think it’s a lot to ask for the price they paid: their lives. …They can’t be brought back, so let’s honor them.

The Maryland Occupational Safety and Health Administration is conducting its own investigation into Cartwell’s death.

Baltimore City Inspector General Isabel Cumming is also investigating, after revealing previous problems within the DPW.

She told WJZ on Friday that she had interviewed more than 100 people and planned to release the results in January.

She encouraged city workers with problems to contact her hotline and said their identities would be protected.

The email is [email protected] or people can call 443-984-3476 or 800-417-0430.

This week, the union representing sanitation workers in Baltimore said that the city failed to provide them with essential safety informationand they worry about the lack of training.

“We are furious at the lack of attention being paid to this. We are furious at the results, the results being death. Let’s be very clear: This is dangerous work,” said Patrick Moran, president of the Maryland chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.