A Roane County grand jury now says they will support a criminal investigation into claims that a TVA contractor failed to protect workers cleaning up a massive coal ash spill back in 2008. Many of those workers later became sick and some died.

More than 200 former cleanup workers have sued Jacobs Engineering in separate lawsuits. They say the contractor exposed them to dangerous ash resulting in illnesses and in some cases, cancer.

Roane County grand jurors this week added to their report suggesting the TBI should look into the cleanup and how it took a toll on the workers.

The report states the accusations made during first trial regarding the ash spill stating air monitoring results and other environmental tests were tampered with and workers were not properly informed of the dangers of coal ash or protected from it.