Chemical tank rupture in Washington state leaves 1 dead, 9 missing

A massive chemical tank ruptured and collapsed at a Washington state paper mill Tuesday, leaving at least one worker dead and nine employees missing as of Tuesday night. Nine other people, including one firefighter, were injured in the incident at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. in Longview, Wash., according to the Longview Fire Department. Injuries ranged from minor to critical, with some suffering burns or inhalation injuries. Longview is a city of 38,000 people roughly 50 miles northwest of Portland.

Local law enforcement said a tank containing 900,000 gallons of white liquor, a chemical mixture used in the paper-pulping process, ruptured early Tuesday morning. As of Tuesday evening, officials said the cause of the incident remained unclear. Some liquid remained in the collapsed tank, which created hazardous conditions for emergency personnel to conduct rescue attempts, Longview Fire Department said. Rescue efforts were scheduled to resume Wednesday morning, Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein said in a press conference.

Who else commented on the incident? Longview Mayor Erik Halvorson said at the press conference that the community has entered a period of profound tragedy and deep mourning. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson told reporters that the Washington National Guard would assist with search efforts and monitoring air quality.

No one from the company spoke at the press conference. The mill’s parent company, Nippon Paper Industries Co., expressed its condolences in a statement Wednesday. The Japanese paper manufacturing company expressed condolences and sympathies to the affected families and apologized for the immense concern and inconvenience caused to the local community.