June 20, 2002 Chinese Mine Explosion Kills 115
The death toll in a northeastern China coal mine blast blamed on faulty ventilation has risen to 115, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Sunday. All who were in the mine during Thursday's blast have been accounted for and most bodies have been brought to the surface for cremation, Xinhua said. Another 24 miners reportedly survived the blast. The explosion Thursday at the Chengzihe mine in Jixi, a city in Heilongjiang province, was the fourth deadliest in China's history, Xinhua said. Investigators are still trying to locate where the explosion occurred in order to determine the exact cause, Xinhua said, quoting Huang Yi, spokesman for the State Administration of Work Safety Supervision. However, he said it was clear that the ventilation system had not been working properly and mine workers were not following proper safety standards, Huang said. Those responsible will suffer "stern punishment," he said.
Source: CSB CIRC
June 20, 2002 UK Plastics Fire Evacuates 2000
More than 2,000 residents of Kingsville were allowed to return to their homes yesterday after a stubborn fire in a plastics plant was brought under control. The residents were forced to abandon their homes Saturday afternoon when fire officials moved in on a huge plastics fire at the Horti-Pak Inc. industrial plant that had been burning for days. The victims told of sore throats and breathing problems prior to leaving, and reported seeing jet black clouds and thick black smoke near their homes.
Source: CSB CIRC
June 17, 2002 Chinese Refuse Mountain Collapses, Kills 10
Village of Shandong, Chongqing municipality, western China. A mountain of garbage waterlogged from days of rain
collapsed onto a factory and workers' dormitory, killing 10 people inside. Four people were dug out of the
garbage and were recovering in hospital. Rescue work was difficult because the collapse also severed power lines
and buried roads. Workers digging through the waste also had to contend with the "overpowering stink" of the
rotting garbage. The dump had been in use for more than a decade and the factory and dormitory were in a gully
at the base of the garbage mountain.
June 14, 2002 Pennsylvania Chemical Tank Collapses, Sends 17 to Hospital
A 40,000 gallon above-ground tank made of fiberglass collapsed while being
filled with hydrochloric acid from a tanker truck, forcing the evacuation of about 100 people. About 17
residents were treated at Canonsburg General Hospital's decontamination unit. None of the company's 30 employees
was hurt.
June 12, 2002 Singaporean Freighter Collision Pollutes Bay
About 450 tons of oil spilled into port waters after a collision between MV Hermion, a Thai-registered
freighter, and Neptank VII, a Singapore bunker tanker chartered by Shell Oil Co. The accident about 4.5km south
of Singapore ruptured one of the Shell Oil tanker's cargo tanks, dumping marine fuel oil into the sea. No one
was injured. Oil booms were placed off the nearby Marina Bay and Sentosa Island theme park as a precautionary
measure, but the Maritime and Port Authority said there were no reports of any oil reaching any of the islands
or mainland.
June 12, 2002 One Injured in Transformer Explosion at Michigan Nuclear Plant
A transformer explosion and fire at the Donald C. Cook Nuclear Plant left one worker injured and put the plant
at the "alert" level for the second time since the plant was built in 1969. The AEP contract employee was
injured when a 345-kilovolt current transformer exploded, sending ceramic material in the worker's direction.
Three other workers were near the transformer. They were not hurt. A spokesman said the workers, who were
performing routine maintenance, were "not at all responsible for the transformer's failure."
June 11, 2002 Japanese Confined Space Incident Kills 4
A worker at a dye factory was cleaning an underground sludge tank, about 3m by 2m by 10m deep, when he fell in.
Some other workers tried to save the man, but they too were overcome by fumes. Four people died and two others
were taken to hospital. Hydrogen sulfide gas was detected near the site after the accident. The company says it
is 100% responsible for the accident, and has "vowed to deal with the situation sincerely".
June 11, 2002 NY Paper Company Explosion Kills 1
Knowlton Specialty Paper Co. An explosion at a paper mill in northern New York killed one worker and injured six
others. The blast occurred in an area of the plant where explosive chemicals were stored. The explosion caused
the wall on the building's north side to crumble and caused massive damage to machinery.
June 11, 2002 Ecuadorean Pipeline Leak Affects Homes, Families
About 400 bbl of crude oil spilled when a pipeline that runs through the town was damaged. Oil poured into
several homes and affected the occupants, including several children. Doctors from state-owned oil company
Petroecuador are treating those affected by the spill. Petroecuador technicians launched a clean-up effort, but
residents said it could take several months to clean up the rivers, as was the case in past oil spills.
June 10, 2002 South Carolina Slurry Leak Leads to Shutdown Order
A hole in a pipe at the Hobet Mining preparation plant is alleged to have dumped about 20,000 gallons of coal
slurry into the Slippery Gut Branch and the Little Coal River and causing South Carolina Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) to issue a shutdown order on the plant. The order was lifted on June 12 after
repairs were made. The leak occurred in a slurry line leading from a preparation plant in the Hobet 21 complex
to the impoundment. A DEP inspector discovered the leak and although the pump to the line was shut down shortly
afterward, the spill did not stop until the line above the hole had drained out.
June 8, 2002 Aussie Molten Ore Spill Leads to Explosions
Up to 100 tons of molten metal overflowed from a furnace and came into contact with water, causing a series of
explosions. A spokesman for the company said no one was injured in the incident and that Port Kembla Copper
regrets the anxiety and concern caused for local residents.
June 7, 2002 UK Nitric Acid Leak Leads to Shelter in Place
A major leak of nitric acid occurred at the Dupont nylon plant, at the Wilton International complex. A nitric
acid vapor cloud formed above the site and roads in the area were closed for almost three hours. People living
in the Grangemouth area were warned to stay inside their homes and close all windows and doors.
June 6, 2002 Fire destroys Jersey Asphalt
Plant
A fire destroyed a building at a tar and asphalt manufacturing plant. The fire started when three employees were
attempting to steam-heat 500 gallons of resin to thicken the substance. The resin overheated and ignited,
overflowing the 750 gallon vessel and spreading through the building. Firefighters managed to contain the blaze,
preventing it from spreading to two other buildings on the property. Witnesses said they heard several small
explosions as steel drums inside the burning building exploded. Splatters of tar throughout the building ignited
during the blaze, making it difficult to extinguish. There were no injuries.
June 6, 2002 Louisiana Refinery Flash Fire Kills 1, Injures 2
A flash fire during maintenance work at the Murphy Oil refinery killed one worker and injured two others. The
fire forced the shut down of one unit but most of the refinery continued operation. The St. Benard Parish Fire
Chief said a hydrocarbon product in a line flared, fatally burning a man working in an aerial basket. The fire
burned another man who was working on a valve on a catwalk closer to the ground. Both were employed by Lou-con
Construction Inc. of Meraux. This is the first fatality at the plant since Murphy purchased the refinery in
1961. According to some reports, the men were doing routine maintenance in a catalytic cracker unit when the
fire erupted. Liquid hydrocarbons came out of a piece of equipment where they did not expect any to be and
ignited. The product leaked to the ground and apparently flashed back up.
June 5, 2002 Israeli Oxygen Warehouse Explosion Kills 2
An explosion at a bottled oxygen warehouse killed two workers and injured another 16. Police believe the
explosion was the result of an accident and not a terrorist attack, as had initially been thought in the first
few minutes after the explosion. A police spokesman said the explosion was apparently caused by an electrical
short circuit that occurred while workers at the factory were filling oxygen cylinders.
June 4, 2002 Minnesota Ethanol Plant Burns, Shut Down Pending Inspection
Fire broke out at the Gopher State Ethanol plant in St. Paul, forcing the plant to close. The fire occurred in
the same grain-drying unit that was damaged in a similar blaze in March. No injuries were reported. The plant
will remain closed until inspectors can walk through the facility again. Following the March fire, a hazardous
materials inspection was conducted by the Fire Department, during which no problems were found. Building
inspectors went through the plant and ordered that a duct in the grain dryer be cleaned and that some
rewiring be done on the fire-suppression system. A state Health Department report in May found that Gopher State reduced
emissions by more than 95% after installing a $1.2 million thermal oxidizer last year. But it recommended that
the plant file an emergency plan with the Fire Department on how it will handle emergencies. The plant has
accidentally released anhydrous ammonia twice since beginning ethanol production.
June 2, 2002 Missouri Petroleum Leak Contaminates River
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) was notified of strong petroleum
odors near a closed fuel terminal. Investigators found that about 250 yards of the river levee was saturated with gasoline, and some
gasoline was making its way into the river. The terminal, owned by Sinclair Corp., was used by for bulk storage
from the 1940s to 1997. The company and DNR were trying to determine the extent of the contamination. DNR
officials do not believe the leak has affected drinking water supplies.
May 31, 2002 Thai Ammonia Leak Kills 1
An anhydrous ammonia leak at an ice-making factory in central Thailand left one worker dead and nine others
injured. About 24 workers were evacuated from the plant after ammonia gas leaked from a machine that was being
serviced. According to a police spokesman: "The man died within minutes of inhaling the gas, which sprayed out
of the machine accidentally when he was about to clean fuel residue."
May 28, 2002 Kiwi Ships Suffers Major Ammonia Leak
More than two tons of ammonia leaked from a ship, the Amaltal Atlantis, owned by the Amaltal Fishing Company.
A Fire Service spokesman said he was unsure what had caused the spill. He said that two fire-fighters and two
Amaltal engineers wearing protective suits went aboard the Amaltal Atlantis, where they turned off the boat's
auxiliary power and isolated several valves.
May 27, 2002 Indonesian Well Explosion Injures Seven
An explosion occurred while workers were drilling for new oil reserves on the site of an old well at PT Exspan's
operations in the Tarakan field. Seven workers were injured in the blast. According to a spokesman for
Pertamina, the state-owned oil company, the rig belonged to private oil contractor PT Expan, a unit of Medco. A
fire crew decided to burn of the gas rather than put out the fire before trying to stop the leakage. Tarakan
supplies gas to a nearby methanol plant. This is the second gas blowout incident in three months in East
Kalimantan. Earlier this year TotalFinaElf E&P Indonesie suffered a gas blowout in the Mahakam Delta.
May 27, 2002 UK Plant Maintenance Work Kills 2
Two workmen suspended on a cradle inside a 40 m metal chimney died when they were engulfed in a fireball after
an explosion. The victims were working at the Carnaud Metalbox Food UK company when a spark is believed to have
ignited a chemical which coated the chimney. The men were knocked out of the cradle by the fireball and plunged
to the ground. The men had been contracted to demolish the chimney. Their bodies were initially left inside the
chimney so that investigators could determine exactly what happened.
May 25, 2002 Significant Oil Spill In Yemen
An "unspecified technical fault" caused three tons of oil to spill into the Arabian Sea at a refinery near the
southern port city of Aden.
May 22, 2002 Kansas Hot Work Propane Explosion Injures 1
A Blue Rhino employee was emptying propane from tanks into water buckets when a small explosion occurred. The
man had numerous burns to his upper body and was taken to the burn center in Wichita. Another man who was nearby
grinding labels from empty tanks was hurt and it is thought that sparks from his grinding may have caused the
explosion. The previous day, Finney County Sheriff's deputies were called to the Blue Rhino propane company for
a similar explosion, although no one was injured and only a small activity report was written.
May 21, 2002 Louisiana Tank Fire Forces Evacuation
Between 50 and 75 people were forced to evacuate their homes as three fire departments fought an oil storage
tank fire. An environmental emergency was declared after water from the firefighting filled a containment area,
the blaze destroyed a pipe leading into a second containment area, and salt water began leaking onto private
property. The governor's office declared an environmental emergency, clearing the way for the state to handle
cleanup. The Manursing Island Production Corp. was listed on the oil field's permits as the responsible owner,
said the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, but the company told officials that it was no longer
responsible for the field. Louisiana State Police are trying to determine who is responsible.
Sources and Disclaimer:
AcuSafe's Incident News Summary is primarily compiled from news wires, online
sources, and from information shared on the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Chemical Incident Reports Center. An effort has been made to summarize stories only from reputable sources, but neither AcuSafe nor AcuTech Consulting can guarantee the accuracy of the story, nor do they necessarily reflect the views of AcuTech, AcuSafe, and its staff.
All information accessed in this report is public domain information. We make no effort to independently corroborate the accuracy of the incident news stories.
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