2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion was an industrial disaster that occurred on February 7, 2008 in Port Wentworth
, Georgia
, United States
. Thirteen people were killed and 42 injured when a dust explosion
occurred at a sugar refinery
owned by Imperial Sugar
. Dust explosions had been an issue of concern amongst United States authorities since three fatal accidents in 2003, with efforts made to improve safety and reduce the risk of recurrence. However, a safety board had criticized this as inadequate.
The refinery was large and old, featuring outdated construction methods. This is thought to have contributed to the fire's severity. The origin of the explosion has been narrowed down to the center of the factory, and is believed to be a basement beneath storage silo
s. Investigations are ongoing, although deliberate criminal activity has been ruled out.
As a result of the disaster new safety legislation has been proposed, while the local economy has slumped because the factory
remains offline, although Imperial intends to rebuild it and return to production by the end of 2008, with replacement buildings completed by Summer the following year. Legal action has been filed by some victims against the owner and the company hired to clean it. Imperial also say the explosion
was the main reason for a major loss in the first quarter of 2008.
that Sugar Land, Texas
-based Imperial Sugar
had acquired from a previous local owner. Known since construction as the Dixie Crystals refinery, Dixie Crystals being a brand name owned by Imperial since the purchase, it was the main employer in the town of 3,500 prior to the disaster. It was constructed in 1916 by 400 people who moved from Louisiana
specifically for the purpose, opened the following year and became Imperial's property in 1997 when the latter bought Savannah Foods to form part of a national supply and distribution network to meet demand from businesses such as Piggly Wiggly
, General Mills
and Wal-Mart
. The refinery sat on a 160 acre (0.6474976 km²; 0.250000221043486 sq mi) site and was spread across 872000 square feet (81,011.5 m²) of it. This makes it the second largest in the US.
Workers described the factory as antiquated, with much of the machinery dating back more than 28 years, but say the site was kept in operation because it had good access to rail and shipping links for transport
.
In the last full fiscal year before the disaster, which ended on September 30, 2007, the facility refined 14.51 million hundredweight
of sugar
, 9% of the nation's requirements, compared to Imperial's Gramercy
, Louisiana
refinery, which refined 11.08 million hundredweight of sugar in the same time period. 90% of the raw sugar supplied to the facility came from overseas in that year, and the company expected the "vast majority" to come in from abroad in the year of the explosion as well.
In the time leading up to the explosion Imperial Sugar had run into financial difficulties. In the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007 sales fell 8%, while profits were down 50% from that year's fourth quarter and stock also down by half since April 2007. The last two annual reports by Imperial before the explosion stated that any damage to the facility at Port Wentworth would "have a material effect on the company's business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows."
Meanwhile, in 2004 the U.S. Chemical Safety Board - which went on to investigate the disaster at Port Wentworth — conducted a study into the risks presented by dust explosions after three fatal accidents in the year before. The West Pharmaceutical Services explosion
killed six, the CTA Acoustics fiberglass insulation manufacturing plant explosion killed seven and the Hayes Lemmerz automotive parts plant explosion killed one, prompting the report. It found that dust explosions posed a severe risk and made a number of recommendations to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
, which remain only partially acted upon. The board continued to be concerned about the potential for further fatal accidents up until Imperial's refinery was the scene of an explosion.
The explosion occurred at 7:00 p.m. local time in what was initially believed to be a room where sugar was bagged by workers. Witnesses from across the Savannah River
in South Carolina
reported seeing flames shoot up several stories high. There were 112 employees on-site at the time. The explosion occurred in the center of the refinery, where bagging and storage facilities were fed completed product by a network of elevators and conveyor belts. Many of the buildings here were six to eight stories high with narrow gaps in between.
Ambulance
s responded to the scene from across twelve counties, and firefighter
s from three. The United States Coast Guard
closed off the river in the area, and a firefighting tug boat was used to douse the resulting fire from the river while a helicopter was used to search the river for anyone who may have been thrown into it by the blast. Refinery workers were brought in to assist with search and rescue
operations as emergency services personnel were unfamiliar with the plant's layout.
The Georgia Emergency Management Agency
alerted local hospitals to prepare for up to 100 casualties. A doctor at nearby Memorial Health hospital described patients arriving at an emergency triage
as varying in condition from suffering minor burns to their hands to having received 80-90% burns, with many in critical condition
, and one with 95% burns. The victims' ages ranged from 18 to 50. Many victims were placed in artificial comas because they were on life support systems. Eight were transported by helicopter to the specialized Joseph M. Still Burn Center
in Augusta
, Georgia, about an hour away. Five of those injured later died there while receiving treatment. As of June 24, 2008 four remain there, three of whom are in critical condition.
A church close to the refinery was used as a point for families seeking information on relatives employed at the facility to congregate. So many people turned up that police requested that each family send only one representative. At the close of the day of the explosion six people were missing with no confirmed deaths. Overnight, several deep-seated fires were uncovered and firefighting continued the next day, at which time most of the three-mile (5 km) stretch of river that had previously been closed was reopened without restriction, although a patrol remained in place to enforce a safety zone. The river restrictions delayed one outgoing vessel and two incoming ones. There was also a minor oil spill originating from equipment at the refinery's unoccupied and rarely used dock.
The explosion also seriously weakened the structure of the facility, leaving it highly unstable, and there was also extensive smoke damage. The packaging area was totally destroyed and in all 12% of the refinery was demolished by the explosion. Removal of debris commenced the day after the accident with assistance from structural engineer
s, and all six missing were found deceased the same day, three of them in tunnels running beneath the factory. The final death toll was thirteen. It was the first major shutdown of a US sugar refinery since American Sugar Refining
Inc.'s Domino Sugar shut down their plant in Chalmette, Louisiana
in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
.
By February 14, 2008, the worst of the fire had been extinguished but the 100 feet (30.5 m) sugar storage silos remained alight despite attempts to put the fire out by dousing them with thousands of gallons of water from a helicopter. Specialist crews and equipment were called in to complete work tackling the smoldering, molten sugar the silos contained. At this time seven of the eight bodies had been recovered, and an eighth person had died in the hospital.
The location of the explosion was quickly established as a building used to store refined sugar prior to packaging it and two of three 100 feet (30.5 m) tall, 18 inches (45.7 cm) thick reinforced concrete
storage silos adjacent to it, as pictured. Heavy equipment had to be used to shore up the partially collapsed structure before firefighters could enter it to search for victims, as well as several other 'key' areas. The explosive substance was also identified within 24 hours to be sugar dust.
Federal investigations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) were launched and are continuing, with methods employed including interviewing witnesses, checking documentation and on-scene examination of the plant. OSHA arrived within two hours and the CSB within 48 hours. Other brief investigations were conducted by state firefighters and police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, but these were ended quickly after confirming there was no evidence of the explosion and fire having been deliberately started. In a press conference held on February 17, 2008 one of the six members of the CSB team said that the explosion showed the ongoing risk from dust explosions despite their report highlighting the matter in 2004.
Investigators were unable to enter the silos themselves as OSHA ruled them to be too hazardous after the explosion. They were only able to access the area after their eventual demolition. By the time this occurred, four months after the disaster, it was believed that the explosion initiated in a basement area beneath the silos, from which sugar was fed up to the packaging building on conveyor belts.
It is believed that the factory's outdated construction materials and methods contributed to the severity of the blaze. The ceiling was of wooden tongue and groove
design, and creosote
used throughout was known as “fat lighter” because of the fire risk it posed.
OSHA's final report must be released by August 7, six months after the accident.
36,000 over safety legislation violations at that plant.
The plant's 371 workers continued to receive payment from Imperial, and 275 were rehired to assist with cleanup and demolition of unsavable parts of the refinery, with work commencing on April 18, 2008 after Imperial's board confirmed their intention to rebuild. The plan is for the plant to return to sugar refining by the end of 2008. Demolition of the sugar silos was conducted on June 24, 2008 with a wrecking ball
. Demolition is set to continue from that date for a week of the area at the center of the explosion. A replacement packaging building and new sugar silos are intended to be completed by Summer 2009. During demolition 2800000 pounds (1,270,058.6 kg) of fire-hardened sugar was recovered from one silo by a crane with a bucket, and another 500000 pounds (226,796.2 kg) from a second. The company hopes it can be recycled for ethanol
production.
In the first quarter of 2008 Imperial posted a $15.5 million loss, which they said was primarily due to the explosion. Port Wentworth saw an economic depression after the accident, with local businesses losing much custom that would normally be supplied by the plant's workers.
Within a month of the accident OSHA, fearing that relevant employers may be unaware their facilities presented a risk of dust explosion
s, sent a letter to 30,000 employees to alert them to the danger of a similar explosion occurring. 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 explosions. In March 2008 Raquel Islas, a female worker whose arms were burnt, sued Savannah company Stokes Contracting, who had a contract to clean the factory. In April 2008 the widow of Shelathia Harvey also sued Stokes, as well as Savannah Foods, who remained a wholly owned subsidiary after Imperial bought them out and in whose name the factory was still owned.
Port Wentworth, Georgia
Port Wentworth is a city in Chatham County, Georgia, USA. The population was 5,359 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Port Wentworth is located at...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Thirteen people were killed and 42 injured when a dust explosion
Dust explosion
A dust explosion is the fast combustion of dust particles suspended in the air in an enclosed location. Coal dust explosions are a frequent hazard in underground coal mines, but dust explosions can occur where any powdered combustible material is present in an enclosed atmosphere.- Conditions for...
occurred at a sugar refinery
Sugar refinery
A sugar refinery is a factory which refines raw sugar.Many cane sugar mills produce raw sugar, i.e. sugar with more colour and therefore more impurities than the white sugar which is normally consumed in households and used as an ingredient in soft drinks, cookies and so forth...
owned by Imperial Sugar
Imperial Sugar
Imperial Sugar is a major U.S. sugar producer and marketer based in Sugar Land, Texas, with sugar refinery operations in California, Georgia, and Louisiana....
. Dust explosions had been an issue of concern amongst United States authorities since three fatal accidents in 2003, with efforts made to improve safety and reduce the risk of recurrence. However, a safety board had criticized this as inadequate.
The refinery was large and old, featuring outdated construction methods. This is thought to have contributed to the fire's severity. The origin of the explosion has been narrowed down to the center of the factory, and is believed to be a basement beneath storage silo
Storage silo
A silo is a structure for storing bulk materials. Silos are used in agriculture to store grain or fermented feed known as silage. Silos are more commonly used for bulk storage of grain, coal, cement, carbon black, woodchips, food products and sawdust. Three types of silos are in widespread use...
s. Investigations are ongoing, although deliberate criminal activity has been ruled out.
As a result of the disaster new safety legislation has been proposed, while the local economy has slumped because the factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
remains offline, although Imperial intends to rebuild it and return to production by the end of 2008, with replacement buildings completed by Summer the following year. Legal action has been filed by some victims against the owner and the company hired to clean it. Imperial also say the explosion
Explosion
An explosion is a rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner, usually with the generation of high temperatures and the release of gases. An explosion creates a shock wave. If the shock wave is a supersonic detonation, then the source of the blast is called a "high explosive"...
was the main reason for a major loss in the first quarter of 2008.
Background
The sugar refinery was a four-story structure on the bank of the Savannah RiverSavannah River
The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the northernmost part of the border...
that Sugar Land, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
-based Imperial Sugar
Imperial Sugar
Imperial Sugar is a major U.S. sugar producer and marketer based in Sugar Land, Texas, with sugar refinery operations in California, Georgia, and Louisiana....
had acquired from a previous local owner. Known since construction as the Dixie Crystals refinery, Dixie Crystals being a brand name owned by Imperial since the purchase, it was the main employer in the town of 3,500 prior to the disaster. It was constructed in 1916 by 400 people who moved from Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
specifically for the purpose, opened the following year and became Imperial's property in 1997 when the latter bought Savannah Foods to form part of a national supply and distribution network to meet demand from businesses such as Piggly Wiggly
Piggly Wiggly
Piggly Wiggly is a supermarket chain operating in the Midwestern and Southern regions of the United States, run by Piggly Wiggly, LLC, an affiliate of C&S Wholesale Grocers. The current company headquarters is in Keene, New Hampshire....
, General Mills
General Mills
General Mills, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 corporation, primarily concerned with food products, which is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The company markets many well-known brands, such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Colombo, Totinos, Jeno's, Pillsbury, Green...
and Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
. The refinery sat on a 160 acre (0.6474976 km²; 0.250000221043486 sq mi) site and was spread across 872000 square feet (81,011.5 m²) of it. This makes it the second largest in the US.
Workers described the factory as antiquated, with much of the machinery dating back more than 28 years, but say the site was kept in operation because it had good access to rail and shipping links for transport
Transport
Transport or transportation is the movement of people, cattle, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles, and operations...
.
In the last full fiscal year before the disaster, which ended on September 30, 2007, the facility refined 14.51 million hundredweight
Hundredweight
The hundredweight or centum weight is a unit of mass defined in terms of the pound . The definition used in Britain differs from that used in North America. The two are distinguished by the terms long hundredweight and short hundredweight:* The long hundredweight is defined as 112 lb, which...
of sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
, 9% of the nation's requirements, compared to Imperial's Gramercy
Gramercy, Louisiana
Gramercy is a town in St. James Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 3,066 at the 2000 census.-History:Gramercy was originally an Indian and French settlement and trading post. In 1739, much of the area which is now known as Gramercy was sold to Joseph Delille Dupart, Commissioner...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
refinery, which refined 11.08 million hundredweight of sugar in the same time period. 90% of the raw sugar supplied to the facility came from overseas in that year, and the company expected the "vast majority" to come in from abroad in the year of the explosion as well.
In the time leading up to the explosion Imperial Sugar had run into financial difficulties. In the fiscal year ending September 30, 2007 sales fell 8%, while profits were down 50% from that year's fourth quarter and stock also down by half since April 2007. The last two annual reports by Imperial before the explosion stated that any damage to the facility at Port Wentworth would "have a material effect on the company's business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows."
Meanwhile, in 2004 the U.S. Chemical Safety Board - which went on to investigate the disaster at Port Wentworth — conducted a study into the risks presented by dust explosions after three fatal accidents in the year before. The West Pharmaceutical Services explosion
West Pharmaceutical Services explosion
The West Pharmaceutical Plant explosion was an industrial disaster that occurred on January 29, 2003 at the West Pharmaceutical Plant in Kinston, North Carolina, United States. Six people were killed and thirty-six people were injured when a large explosion ripped through the facility. Two...
killed six, the CTA Acoustics fiberglass insulation manufacturing plant explosion killed seven and the Hayes Lemmerz automotive parts plant explosion killed one, prompting the report. It found that dust explosions posed a severe risk and made a number of recommendations to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. It was created by Congress of the United States under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970...
, which remain only partially acted upon. The board continued to be concerned about the potential for further fatal accidents up until Imperial's refinery was the scene of an explosion.
Explosion and emergency response
Savannah River
The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the northernmost part of the border...
in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
reported seeing flames shoot up several stories high. There were 112 employees on-site at the time. The explosion occurred in the center of the refinery, where bagging and storage facilities were fed completed product by a network of elevators and conveyor belts. Many of the buildings here were six to eight stories high with narrow gaps in between.
Ambulance
Ambulance
An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
s responded to the scene from across twelve counties, and firefighter
Firefighter
Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
s from three. The United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
closed off the river in the area, and a firefighting tug boat was used to douse the resulting fire from the river while a helicopter was used to search the river for anyone who may have been thrown into it by the blast. Refinery workers were brought in to assist with search and rescue
Search and rescue
Search and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
operations as emergency services personnel were unfamiliar with the plant's layout.
The Georgia Emergency Management Agency
Georgia Emergency Management Agency
The Georgia Emergency Management Agency or GEMA is the emergency management agency for the U.S. state of Georgia. Its function is similar to that of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in preparing for and responding to disasters, and mitigating potential hazards....
alerted local hospitals to prepare for up to 100 casualties. A doctor at nearby Memorial Health hospital described patients arriving at an emergency triage
Triage
Triage or ) is the process of determining the priority of patients' treatments based on the severity of their condition. This rations patient treatment efficiently when resources are insufficient for all to be treated immediately. The term comes from the French verb trier, meaning to separate,...
as varying in condition from suffering minor burns to their hands to having received 80-90% burns, with many in critical condition
Critical Condition
Critical condition is a medical state.Critical Condition may also be:* Critical Condition , an episode of the television series Sex and the City* Critical Condition , a 1987 comedy film...
, and one with 95% burns. The victims' ages ranged from 18 to 50. Many victims were placed in artificial comas because they were on life support systems. Eight were transported by helicopter to the specialized Joseph M. Still Burn Center
Joseph M. Still Burn Center
Joseph M. Still Burn Center is a large medical burn facility located in Augusta, Georgia . It is part of the Doctors Hospital campus, and serves as a primary burn care center for the Southeastern United States. The 59-bed unit sees admission of more than 2,000 patients annually, mostly from the...
in Augusta
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...
, Georgia, about an hour away. Five of those injured later died there while receiving treatment. As of June 24, 2008 four remain there, three of whom are in critical condition.
A church close to the refinery was used as a point for families seeking information on relatives employed at the facility to congregate. So many people turned up that police requested that each family send only one representative. At the close of the day of the explosion six people were missing with no confirmed deaths. Overnight, several deep-seated fires were uncovered and firefighting continued the next day, at which time most of the three-mile (5 km) stretch of river that had previously been closed was reopened without restriction, although a patrol remained in place to enforce a safety zone. The river restrictions delayed one outgoing vessel and two incoming ones. There was also a minor oil spill originating from equipment at the refinery's unoccupied and rarely used dock.
The explosion also seriously weakened the structure of the facility, leaving it highly unstable, and there was also extensive smoke damage. The packaging area was totally destroyed and in all 12% of the refinery was demolished by the explosion. Removal of debris commenced the day after the accident with assistance from structural engineer
Structural engineer
Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research structural components and structural systems to achieve design goals and ensure the safety and comfort of users or occupants...
s, and all six missing were found deceased the same day, three of them in tunnels running beneath the factory. The final death toll was thirteen. It was the first major shutdown of a US sugar refinery since American Sugar Refining
American Sugar Refining
American Sugar Refining, Inc., headquartered in Yonkers, New York, is the world’s largest cane sugar refining company, with a production capacity of more than seven million tons of sugar...
Inc.'s Domino Sugar shut down their plant in Chalmette, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
.
By February 14, 2008, the worst of the fire had been extinguished but the 100 feet (30.5 m) sugar storage silos remained alight despite attempts to put the fire out by dousing them with thousands of gallons of water from a helicopter. Specialist crews and equipment were called in to complete work tackling the smoldering, molten sugar the silos contained. At this time seven of the eight bodies had been recovered, and an eighth person had died in the hospital.
Investigation
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
storage silos adjacent to it, as pictured. Heavy equipment had to be used to shore up the partially collapsed structure before firefighters could enter it to search for victims, as well as several other 'key' areas. The explosive substance was also identified within 24 hours to be sugar dust.
Federal investigations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. It was created by Congress of the United States under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970...
(OSHA) and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) were launched and are continuing, with methods employed including interviewing witnesses, checking documentation and on-scene examination of the plant. OSHA arrived within two hours and the CSB within 48 hours. Other brief investigations were conducted by state firefighters and police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, but these were ended quickly after confirming there was no evidence of the explosion and fire having been deliberately started. In a press conference held on February 17, 2008 one of the six members of the CSB team said that the explosion showed the ongoing risk from dust explosions despite their report highlighting the matter in 2004.
Investigators were unable to enter the silos themselves as OSHA ruled them to be too hazardous after the explosion. They were only able to access the area after their eventual demolition. By the time this occurred, four months after the disaster, it was believed that the explosion initiated in a basement area beneath the silos, from which sugar was fed up to the packaging building on conveyor belts.
It is believed that the factory's outdated construction materials and methods contributed to the severity of the blaze. The ceiling was of wooden tongue and groove
Tongue and groove
A strong joint, the tongue and groove joint is widely used for re-entrant angles. The effect of wood shrinkage is concealed when the joint is beaded or otherwise moulded...
design, and creosote
Creosote
Creosote is the portion of chemical products obtained by the distillation of a tar that remains heavier than water, notably useful for its anti-septic and preservative properties...
used throughout was known as “fat lighter” because of the fire risk it posed.
OSHA's final report must be released by August 7, six months after the accident.
Aftermath
Imperial's refinery in Louisiana was shut down by the company six weeks after the Port Wentworth disaster over fears a similar explosion would occur there, and was not returned to operation for a week. OSHA fined Imperial $United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
36,000 over safety legislation violations at that plant.
The plant's 371 workers continued to receive payment from Imperial, and 275 were rehired to assist with cleanup and demolition of unsavable parts of the refinery, with work commencing on April 18, 2008 after Imperial's board confirmed their intention to rebuild. The plan is for the plant to return to sugar refining by the end of 2008. Demolition of the sugar silos was conducted on June 24, 2008 with a wrecking ball
Wrecking ball
A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a crane, that is used for demolishing large buildings. It was most common during the 1950s and 1960s. Several wrecking companies claim to have invented the wrecking ball...
. Demolition is set to continue from that date for a week of the area at the center of the explosion. A replacement packaging building and new sugar silos are intended to be completed by Summer 2009. During demolition 2800000 pounds (1,270,058.6 kg) of fire-hardened sugar was recovered from one silo by a crane with a bucket, and another 500000 pounds (226,796.2 kg) from a second. The company hopes it can be recycled for ethanol
Ethanol
Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
production.
In the first quarter of 2008 Imperial posted a $15.5 million loss, which they said was primarily due to the explosion. Port Wentworth saw an economic depression after the accident, with local businesses losing much custom that would normally be supplied by the plant's workers.
Within a month of the accident OSHA, fearing that relevant employers may be unaware their facilities presented a risk of dust explosion
Dust explosion
A dust explosion is the fast combustion of dust particles suspended in the air in an enclosed location. Coal dust explosions are a frequent hazard in underground coal mines, but dust explosions can occur where any powdered combustible material is present in an enclosed atmosphere.- Conditions for...
s, sent a letter to 30,000 employees to alert them to the danger of a similar explosion occurring. 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 explosions. In March 2008 Raquel Islas, a female worker whose arms were burnt, sued Savannah company Stokes Contracting, who had a contract to clean the factory. In April 2008 the widow of Shelathia Harvey also sued Stokes, as well as Savannah Foods, who remained a wholly owned subsidiary after Imperial bought them out and in whose name the factory was still owned.
External links
- WSAV article with complete list of those killed and injured
- Worker Protection Against Combustible Dust Explosions and Fires Act of 2008 GovTrack 2007-2008 (110th Congress110th United States CongressThe One Hundred Tenth United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the second term of President George W. Bush. It was composed of the Senate and the House of...
) - Inferno: Dust Explosion at Imperial Sugar, a CSBU.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation BoardThe U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, also known as the Chemical Safety Board or CSB, is an independent U.S. federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the agency's board members are appointed by the president and...
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