Chemical tank was deemed unsafe months before deadly Washington blast

A chemical tank that exploded at a Washington state paper mill in May and left nearly a dozen people dead was known to be unfit for service almost a year prior to the deadly blast, a federal investigation report released on Aug. 28 found.

The explosion that injured several others, including one firefighter, took place May 26 at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview about 45 miles north of Portland, Oregon.

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, in an update released on its investigation into the catastrophic failure of a 1.2 million-gallon atmospheric storage tank at the mill, found the company was told 10 months earlier the tank was "not fit for continued service and could fail."

When it ruptured, the tank released about 900,000 gallons of "extremely hot highly caustic white liquor," a highly alkaline chemical solution used to turn wood chips into paper pulp. The incident killed 11 employees and seriously injured three others. Five other employees also suffered minor injuries, according to the report.

The blast sent several mill workers and one firefighter to local hospitals for treatment after suffering injuries including chemical burns. Scott Goldstein, chief of Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue, said…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/