The human toll of the accident at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging paper mill on May 26 in Longview, Washington, USA, is now definitive. The American authorities have announced that they have located and identified the eleven employees who died after the white liquor tank ruptured at this pulp and paper mill belonging to the Japanese group Nippon Paper Industries.
Nine victims were found at the site during search operations, and two others died after being transferred to hospital. Eight people were also injured in the accident, according to the parent company. The search, complicated by the risk of collapse and the presence of corrosive chemicals, is now over.
As reported in our previous article, around 7 a.m. on May 26, some 1.9 million liters of white liquor, a mixture of caustic soda and sodium sulfide used in the kraft process, spilled into the plant.
According to the Seattle Times, the county medical examiner, Dana Tucker, described the tragedy as "one of the greatest tragedies to befall our community since the eruption of Mount St. Helens" which, in 1980, caused the death of 57 people.
The investigation into the causes of the tank rupture is continuing. The impact of the accident on the environment and production is still being assessed, says Nippon Paper Industries.
