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LONGVIEW, Wash. - The chemical tank explosion at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in Longview has left two people dead and nine workers remain missing.
Officials said recovery efforts were delayed due to safety risks but are moving forward on Wednesday after inspectors checked the damaged tank. Environmental agencies are actively monitoring local air and water quality, and officials said there is currently no threat to public health.
Timeline:
The chemical tank implosion happened at the Longview paper mill before 7:30 a.m. Tuesday. Crews responded to a report of a rupture of a tank containing white liquor, a highly corrosive chemical mixture.
The implosion left one person dead and eight others, including one firefighter, injured.
In a Wednesday update, officials said a person who was taken to the hospital from the scene, died from their injuries, bringing the death count to two.
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Here's what we know about the Longview chemical implosion
One person died, nine people are missing and nine other suffered injuries in a chemical tank explosion at a paper mill in Longview on Tuesday.
Nine people remain missing, officials said.
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet released the specific names of the missing workers or the two people who died.
It is also unknown exactly what caused the industrial tank to rupture, or what specific chemicals make up the white liquor product that spilled during the explosion.
What's next:
Recovery teams had to delay their search because they were worried the damaged tank might collapse. An estimated 90,000 gallons of additional chemicals remain in the tank. An inspection revealed the remaining product is a significantly smaller volume, which will allow responders to develop a plan to move forward to remove it.
Officials scheduled a news conference for 1 p.m. Wednesday to provide further updates.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Washington State Department of Ecology, the Longview Fire Department and original reporting by FOX 13 Seattle.
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