A fatal gas release in January at the Woodland Pulp paper mill in the Washington County town of Baileyville could have been prevented, federal investigators found in preliminary findings issued Tuesday.
The release of highly toxic hydrogen sulfide gas resulted in the deaths of two employees, a 20-year-old co-op chemical engineering student and a 26-year-old chemical engineer who had only recently joined the company. Another 10 employees were also exposed to the toxic hydrogen sulfide gas.
The incident is being investigated by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, which issued preliminary findings in an 11-page update.
“Although our investigation is still ongoing, it already is clear that this terrible tragedy should never have happened,” said Steve Owens, who chairs the agency.
“The two young employees who died were not provided with personal hydrogen sulfide monitors that would have alerted them to the presence of the toxic gas, and there were no hydrogen sulfide detectors installed in the building where the release occurred,” he explained.
Owens noted that the company did not keep track of who was in the building and where they were during the tragedy. “As a result, the two young employees were not found until hours after the release ended, leaving them exposed to the highly toxic gas without assistance.”
Sylvia Johnson, a board member with the agency, said that despite being aware of the hazards associated with hydrogen sulfide gas forming in the acid sewer piping, the company did not have adequate systems in place to monitor or mitigate the hazards.
“This safety gap likely led to the severity of this tragic incident,” she said.
Woodland Pulp reviewing report
Scott Beal, a spokesman for Woodland Pulp, told Mainebiz on Wednesday that “we are in receipt of the CSB interim report and are reviewing it.”
With other related investigations pending, he said the company is holding off on further comment.
The agency has not given a timeline for releasing its final report, which is expected to include complete findings, analyses and recommendations.
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board is an independent, non-regulatory federal agency charged with investigating incidents and hazards that result, or may result, in the catastrophic release of extremely hazardous substances.
