MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Middletown Mayor Tony Perry said he is waiting for the state's official report into how a worker died at the town's sewage treatment plant before he publicly comments whether or not those running the facility should step down.

The plant's unionized workers are calling on Township of Middletown Sewerage Authority (TOMSA) chairwoman Chantal Buow and others to resign, after employee John Molnar died at the plant on May 31.

The state of New Jersey then issued nearly 30 safety violations to the plant this summer.

Perry called Molnar's death "incredibly tragic," and said he met with the workers, heard their concerns about safety issues and toured the Belford facility with them.

"I am going to withhold comment until the state's report into (Molnar's) death is released," said Perry. "An independent investigation is required to determine who is responsible here. Everyone is entitled to due process."

The office of Public Employees Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH), which is run by the state Department of Labor, is still conducting its official investigation into how Molnar died.

Perry said he expects their report will be completed and made public next month, in October.

CWA Local 1075, which has an office on Hwy. 35, is calling for Bouw, vice chair Emil Wrede and TOMSA executive director Brian Rischman to resign immediately.

According to union president Kevin Tauro, Molnar was not wearing a safety harness when he was told to enter a 20-foot-deep manhole on the afternoon of May 31, 2022. He either became unconscious from gases or fell to his death into water at the bottom of the hole, or some combination of both. Molnar lived in Hazlet and left behind these three children.

Bouw and Rischman have declined to respond to the assertion that Molnar was not wearing a harness. They also have ignored all questions from the media about his death.

In June — in response to Molnar's death — the union asked PEOSH to inspect the facility, and PEOSH inspected the plant on two different dates this summer.

PEOSH then issued dozens of safety violations, most of which the state deemed "serious" in nature — ranging from employees working with live electric currents, employees being untrained in how to work with electricity and a "facility-wide lack of personal protective equipment."

In total, PEOSH issued 27 safety violations to the Belford plant and said if they were not fixed, the sewage authority could be fined $700-$4,900 per day per violation.

All the Department of Labor safety violations have since been rectified, said DOL spokesman Thomas Wright on Thursday morning. However, there are still outstanding complaints that technically fall under the Department of Health that have not been resolved, he said.

Also, union president Tauro said he was unsatisfied with answers Buow gave workers at a TOMSA board meeting this past Monday night, where the union took a public vote of no-confidence in management.

"She couldn't even answer if (Molnar) was wearing a harness," said Tauro of Buow. "She was more concerned with COVID safety protocols."

Bouw has been the chairwoman of TOMSA for decades now. She and all the other TOMSA commissioners are appointed by the Middletown Township Committee. Bouw's term expires in February 2023.

Initial Patch report: 'Serious' Safety Violations Found At Middletown Sewerage Authority: State (Sept. 21)

Middletown Sewerage Authority Employee Dies After Workplace Fall (June 2)

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