The blast of Georgia sugar refinery 2008 was an industrial disaster that occurred on February 7, 2008 in Port Wentworth, Georgia, United States. Fourteen people were killed and forty people injured when a dust explosion occurred at a sugar refinery owned by Imperial Sugar. The dust explosion has been a problem among US authorities since three fatal accidents in 2003, with efforts made to improve safety and reduce the risk of recurrence.
The refinery is large and old, featuring an outdated construction method, and these factors are believed to have contributed to the severity of the fire. The origin of the explosion has been narrowed down to the center of the plant. It is believed to have occurred in the basement under the storage silo. Investigations conducted by the Justice Department rule out deliberate criminal activity in 2013.
As a result of the disaster, a new security law is proposed. The local economy is declining as the plant closes. Imperial intends to rebuild and return to production by the end of 2008, with the replacement building to be completed in the summer of the following year. Some victims filed lawsuits for damages to rented owners and companies to clean the refinery. Imperial said that the explosion was the main reason for huge losses in the first quarter of 2008.
The US Chemical Safety Council released its report on the incident in September 2009, saying that the explosion was "wholly preventable". Investigations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also concluded that sugar dust is a fuel for preventable explosion. As of September 2010, 44 lawsuits have been filed in Chatham County Court against Imperial Sugar and/or its cleaning contractor. Eighteen have been completed.
Video 2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion
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The sugar refinery is a four-story structure on the banks of the Savannah River. Sugar Imperial, based in Sugar Land, Texas, purchased its refinery and brand name in 1997 from a previous local owner. Known since the construction as a Dixie Crystal refinery, it was the premier company in the 3,500 city before the disaster.
The refinery was built in 1916 by 400 people who were moved from Louisiana specifically for the purpose, and opened the following year. Imperial purchased refineries along with Savannah Foods to form part of the national supply and distribution network to meet the demands of businesses such as Piggly Wiggly, General Mills and Wal-Mart. The refinery is on an area of ​​160 hectares (0.65 km km) and is spread over 872,000 square feet (81,000 m 2 ). This network is the second largest in the US. Workers described the plant as an antiques, with many machines over the age of 28. They say that the site is still operating because it has good access to the rail network and delivery for transportation.
In the last full fiscal year before the disaster, which ended on September 30, 2007, the facility is perfecting 14.51 million pounds of sugar, 9% of the country's needs, compared to Imperial's Gramercy, Louisiana, refinery, which distills 11.08 million tons of sugar. in the same time period. 90% of the raw sugar supplied to the facility came from abroad that year, and the company expects "most" to come from abroad in the year of the explosion as well.
By the time of the explosion, Imperial Sugar had financial difficulties. In the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007, sales fell 8%, while profit fell 50% from the fourth quarter of that year, and shares also halved since April 2007. The last two annual reports by Imperial before the blast say that any damages to the facility at Port Wentworth will "have a material effect on the company's business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows".
Meanwhile, in 2004, the Security Inquiry Agency and Chemical Hazard conducted a study of the risks presented by the dust explosion after three fatal accidents in the previous year. The Western Pharmaceutical Service explosion killed six people, the explosion of the Cally Acoustics Fiberglass insulation factory killed seven people, and the explosion of Hayes Lemmerz spare parts factory killed one person, pushing the report. Their report shows that between 1980 and 2005, there were 281 explosions involving combustible dust, which caused 119 deaths and 718 injuries. The board found that the dust explosion posed a severe risk and made a number of recommendations for the Occupational Safety and Health. This has been partially implemented in 2008. The Council continues to be concerned about the potential for further fatal accidents until the Imperial refinery is the scene of the explosion.
Maps 2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion
Explosion and emergency response
The explosion occurred at 7:00 pm. local time in what was originally believed to be a room where sugar was bagged by workers. Witnesses from across the Savannah River in South Carolina reported seeing the fire firing at several high levels. There were 112 employees on site at the time. The explosion occurred at the center of the refinery, storage and storage facilities were fed the finished product by a network of elevators and conveyors. Many of the buildings here are six to eight stories high with narrow slits in between.
The ambulance responded to scenes from twelve districts, and firefighters of three. Coast Guard of the United States closes the river in the area, and firefighters are used to extinguish the fire generated from the river. Helicopters are used to search for rivers for anyone who might be thrown into them by the explosion. Refinery workers are brought in to assist with search and rescue operations, since emergency service personnel are unfamiliar with the plant's layout. Red Cross workers Joyce Baker was among the first to arrive at the scene. He reported that it was like "walking to hell", with some men he treated having "no skin at all", while others had skin "just drip them".
Georgia Emergency Management Agency warned local hospitals to prepare up to 100 victims. A doctor at the nearby Memorial Health hospital describes patients who arrive at the emergency triage because it varies under the conditions of suffering minor burns into their hands to receive 80-90% burns, with many being in critical condition, and one with 95% burns. The age of the victims ranged from 18 to 50 years. Many victims are placed in artificial comas as they are in life support systems. Eight were transported by helicopter to the Joseph M. Still Burn Center special in Augusta, Georgia, about an hour's drive. Five of those who were injured then died there while receiving treatment.
A church close to the refinery is used as a point for families looking for information about relatives employed at the facility. Many people showed up so the police asked that each family only send one representative. At the close of the day of the explosion, six people disappeared, without confirmation of death. Last night, several deep fires were found and the firemen continued the next day.
Most of the previously closed three miles (5 km) stretch of the river was opened without restriction, although the patrol remains in place to establish a safe zone. River delays delayed one ship out and two entered. There is also a light oil spill coming from equipment on the dock that is unoccupied and rarely used.
The explosion seriously weakened the facility's structure, making it extremely unstable, and there was extensive smoke damage. The packaging area is completely destroyed and all, 12% of the refineries are destroyed by the explosion. Removal of debris began the day after the accident, with the help of structural engineers. The six missing persons were all found dead that day, three of them in a tunnel running under the factory. The last death toll is thirteen. It was the first major closure of a US sugar refinery since Sugar Domining Sugar Sugar from the United States closed its plant in Chalmette, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.
On February 14, 2008, the worst fire has been extinguished. The 100 foot (30 m) sugar storage silo remains lit despite efforts to extinguish the fire by watering it with thousands of gallons of water from the helicopter. Special officers and equipment are called in to complete the work of handling glowing and melting sugars in the silos. At this time, seven bodies have been found, and the eighth man has died in the hospital.
Investigation
The explosion site was quickly established as a building used to store refined sugar before packing and two of three 100 feet (30 m) tall, 18 inch (46 cm) thick concrete storage slabs adjacent to it, as illustrated. According to Imperial Sugar CEO John Sheptor, the accumulation of sugar dust may act like gunpowder. Sheptor, who was in the factory at the time of the explosion, survived only because he was protected by a firewall. Heavy equipment should be used to support partially collapsed structures before firefighters can enter it in search of victims. Within 24 hours, an explosive substance is identified as sugar dust.
Federal investigations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) were launched, and they interviewed witnesses, examined documentation, and conducted on-site inspections. OSHA arrives within two hours and CSB within 48 hours. Other brief investigations were carried out by state firefighters and state police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, but this ended quickly after making sure there was no evidence that the explosion and fire had started deliberately. In a press conference held on February 17, 2008, one of the six members of the CSB team said that the explosion indicated an ongoing risk of a dust explosion even though their report highlighted the issue in 2004.
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Aftermath
Initial response
The Imperial refinery in Louisiana was closed by the company six weeks after the Port Wentworth disaster, fearing a similar explosion would occur there. It continued to operate for more than a week. OSHA fined Imperial $ 36,000 for breach of safety legislation at the plant.
371 Georgian factory workers continue to receive payments from Imperial, and 275 are reinstated to assist in cleaning and dismantling refinery sections that can not be saved. Work began on April 18, 2008 after the Imperial board confirmed their intention to rebuild. The plan is for the plant to return to sugar purification by the end of 2008. The dismantling of sugar silos was done on June 24, 2008 with a destructive ball. The replacement packaging and new sugar silos are intended to be completed in the summer of 2009. During the demolition, 2,800,000 pounds (1,300,000 kg) of hardened sugar is recovered from one silo, and another 500,000 pounds (230,000 kg) from the second.. The company hopes to recycle products for ethanol production. In the first quarter of 2008, Imperial posted a $ 15.5 million loss, which they said was mainly caused by the explosion. Port Wentworth suffered an economic depression after the accident, with local businesses losing many customers. Imperial Sugar is bought in 2012 by Louis Dreyfus Group.
Report from OSHA and CSB
Within a month after the accident, OSHA, concerned that the entrepreneurs may not be aware that their facilities pose a risk of dust explosion, sent a letter to 30,000 employees to remind them of the danger of a similar explosion. OSHA also proposed the Combustible Dust Explosion and Fire Prevention Act of 2008, a new bill aimed at introducing regulations to reduce the risk of dust explosion. The bill was passed by the United States House of Representatives but never passed the United States Senate. In 2009 OSHA began to develop federal standards for combustible dust. Congress introduced the bill in 2013 to require OSHA to issue temporary standards based on voluntary voluntary standards set by the National Fire Protection Association.
In March 2008, Raquel Islas, a woman worker whose hands were burned, sued the Savannah company, Stokes Contracting, which is a contracted construction company. In April 2008, Shelathia Harvey's widow also sued Stokes, as well as Savannah Foods. It was a wholly owned subsidiary after Imperial bought it and the factory was still owned in its name. In August, 2008 Malcolm Frazier succumbed to his wounds, bringing the number of deaths to fourteen. Frazier, who suffered burns of more than 85% of his body, died at Joseph M. Still Burn Center, where he has remained ever since the explosion.
On February 7, 2009, a monument to honor the people lost in the blast was dedicated in Legacy Park, on the basis of the Port Wentworth factory. OSHA fined Imperial $ 8.8 million in May 2010 after citing the company for 211 offenses at the Port Wentworth plant and plant in Gramercy, Louisiana. After the settlement negotiations, the company agreed to pay $ 6 million, while not admitting a mistake.
The Chemical Safety Council released its report in September 2009, saying the explosion was "wholly preventable". He noted that the sugar industry has been aware of the risk of dust explosion since 1926. In particular, the internal company memorandum by managers in 1967 expressed their concern about the potential for explosion from sugar dust. Imperial Sugar recently made a construction change that allows the accumulation of sugar dust. It has never conducted evacuation procedures, and the lack of emergency lighting means that people are confined to dark alleys and tunnels at the time of the explosion.
Legal issues
Disaster victims continue to make claims against Imperial Sugar and its construction contractor. As of September 2010, 44 civil suits have been filed at Chatham County Court in connection with the blast, and eighteen have been completed. The country's appeals court rejected attempts by defendant's lawyer for a pre-trial appeal in two related cases in an attempt to limit the damage. In 2011 Lawrence Manker, Jr., an Imperial Sugar worker who underwent 70 surgeries for burns covering 85% of his body after the factory boom, finalized his lawsuit with the company for an undisclosed amount. He was the last victim to leave the burn unit in the hospital.
The Department of Labor requested Ed Tarver, US Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, pursuing criminal charges against Imperial Sugar and its executives. OSHA cites Imperial with 124 security breaches, finding that the company acts with "indifference to, or deliberate neglect for, employee safety and health". Tarver says there is not enough evidence of a deliberate neglect or a clear indifference to a criminal suit against the Imperial. He also cites the lack of federal criminal law that specifically deals with safety in the sugar industry as the reason for his decision.
See also
- US. Agency for Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigations
- Occupational Health and Safety Administration
- Occupational safety and health
References
External links
- "TIMELINE: Empire Sugar Blast from 2008 to the present day." Contains a list of fatalities.
- Protection of Workers on Burning and Dust Burns that is Burning UU 2008. (The 110th Congress)
- "Inferno: Dust Blast at Sugar Empire", CSB security video.
- "How does sugar blow up?" Referring to the explosion of Imperial Sugar.
- Port Wentworth, Georgia: Sugar Blast Memorial.
- Sugar Refinery honor ceremony. Video archive Savannah Morning News.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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