Why Did PCA’s Mill Explode?

The CSB began investigating hot work hazards following an explosion that occurred on July 29, 2008, at the Packaging Corp. of America (PCA) containerboard mill in Tomahawk, Wis., which killed three maintenance workers and injured another. The CSB determined the explosion resulted from welding above an 80-foot-tall storage tank that contained highly flammable hydrogen gas – the product of bacterial decomposition of organic fiber waste inside the tank.
At the time of the accident, PCA did not recognize waste fiber tanks as potentially hazardous or require combustible gas monitoring prior to welding nearby. PCA, which fully cooperated with the CSB investigation, subsequently developed new company standards requiring gas monitoring before any hot work.
The safety bulletin, entitled “Seven Key Lessons to Prevent Worker Deaths During Hot Work in and Around Tanks,” notes that the CSB has identified more than 60 fatalities since 1990 due to explosions and fires from hot work activities on tanks.
Industries where hot work explosions have occurred include food processing, pulp and paper manufacturing, oil production and recycling, waste treatment, and fuel storage and distribution.
A comprehensive safety video on the dangers of hot work – based on the new safety bulletin – is in production and is expected to be released within approximately a month, says CSB Director of Public Affairs Daniel Horowitz.
For more information, visit www.csb.gov.

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