Funerals, some grim, some spirited, begin for 9 victims of Ga. sugar refinery explosion

SAVANNAH, Ga. -- A vase of red roses sat in front of the church altar Saturday, flanked by portraits of Truitt Byers and a blue baseball cap with the logo for Dixie Crystals -- the brand of sugar produced by a refinery where the 54-year-old was killed in an explosion.

The first memorial services for Byers and the other victims came a day after crews recovered the final body from inside the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth west of Savannah. The explosion killed nine people Feb. 7 -- eight found dead inside the plant, and a ninth worker who died of burns at an Augusta hospital.

Byers had worked as an operator mechanic at the refinery for 22 years. More than 250 people, including dozens of co-workers, attended his memorial service at Immanuel Baptist Church as Byers' wife, Debra, sobbed into a tissue while sitting with their son and daughter.

The Rev. Larry Williams read a statement compiled by family members who described Byers as a fun-loving man with a bounce in his walk who "always made you laugh, even when he wasn't trying to."

Co-worker Garry Hendricks recalled that Byers could fall asleep "at the drop of a hat" if he had to sit still for more than a few minutes -- such as when he nodded off during a meeting at the refinery a week before the explosion.

"I was sitting next to Truitt at the meeting and heard a loud snoring," Williams read from Hendricks' written remembrance. "I had to elbow him awake. Two minutes later, he woke himself up snoring, looking around the room to see who had made the noise."

Williams noted Byers' son, Michael, had to take time away from his studies at Georgia Southern University because of a recent knee injury -- and therefore got to spend two weeks at home with his father before Byers' death.

"We believe God works through the worst to bring about good," Williams told the mourners. "It's OK to ask questions. It's OK to cry. We can weep, but not as those who have no hope."

Services were also held Saturday for refinery workers Earl Quarterman, 55, of Savannah; Byron Singleton, 26, of Ellabell; and Shelathia Harvey, 31, of Hinesville.

Investigators concluded Friday that combustible sugar dust collecting in a basement area beneath the plant's storage silos ignited to cause the explosion. Exactly what sparked the dust has not been determined.

Also killed in the explosion were Eric Barnes, 56, of Savannah; Mike Williams, 55, of Savannah; Earl Johnson, 56, of Savannah; and Tony Thomas of Garden City. The ninth victim, 40-year-old Michael Kelly Fields of Rincon, died Thursday at the Joseph M. Stills Burn Center at Doctors Hospital in Augusta. Authorities did not release Thomas' age.

About 600 people filled the Temple of Glory Community Church in Savannah during the funeral for Quarterman, who worked at the sugar refinery for a decade.

The service seemed more of a celebration than a time of mourning. Minister Vernon Quarterman, a nephew of Earl Quarterman, said he wanted the service to reflect "the way I remember Earl, those good times we had."

Ministers led family and friends in singing and praise, shouting as they swayed and clapped their hands to hymns.

Family members remembered Quarterman as taking great pride in his family, especially in his son, Earl Jr., for graduating from college and his daughter, Akilah, for buying a home in Atlanta.

"Earl, I love you dearly," said Quarterman's brother, Alfred Quarterman Jr., his voice shaking as he spoke from the front of the church. "But God loves you best."