No state agency was responsible for inspecting the 900,000-gallon chemical storage tank that burst at a mill in southwest Washington this week, leaving 11 people presumed dead.
Unlike underground storage tanks that are inspected at least every three years by the Department of Ecology due to groundwater contamination risks, ensuring the safety of above-ground tanks is largely left to site operators.
“There’s no one agency or regulatory body that would be responsible for inspecting any single (above-ground) tank,” said Marissa Baker, industrial hygiene program director at the University of Washington.
“Ultimately, the responsibility falls on the mill owner and operator,” Baker said. “Part of maintaining a safe and healthy work site is ensuring the structural integrity of their tanks that store extremely hazardous chemicals.”
The tank at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging plant in Longview contained a caustic substance known as white liquor. The chemical, used in paper manufacturing, is highly corrosive and can cause severe burns upon contact with skin.
On Friday, Longview Fire Chief Brad Hannig said a seventh person was recovered from the site, raising the confirmed death toll to nine, with two victims still missing.
The recovery crew vacuumed out large amounts of liquid from the facility on Thursday evening and is now working in “a much closer proximity” to finding the two remaining victims, said Matt Amos, Longview Fire Battalion chief.
Two people injured during the tank failure remained hospitalized as of Thursday at the Legacy Oregon Burn Center.
Why the tank failed remains unclear. The federal Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board is investigating.
At the state level, Washington’s Department of Ecology oversees the Nippon Dynawave’s water and air quality permits as well as hazardous waste, but those permits do not cover the integrity of storage tanks like the one that failed, said Anna Izenman, Ecology spokesperson.
And, the Department of Labor and Industries has the authority to make sure the company is assessing on-site hazards but doesn’t conduct storage tank inspections, said Matt Ross, public affairs manager for the agency.
Nippon Dynawave did not respond to a request for comment.
An unknown amount of the white liquor spilled outside the facility and authorities have said some of it went into the nearby Columbia River. It also flowed into a local diking system.
Since Tuesday, 23 dead fish, including carp, redfish and bluegill, have been collected near the mill by the Department of Ecology, said Courtney Serad, lead spill responder with the agency.
“As we continue to flush the ditches, we do anticipate that some of the dead fish that we cannot recover will be discharged” into the Columbia River, Serad said, advising the public not to touch or collect them.
Longview’s drinking water remains safe, said Chris Collins, the city’s public works director.
Residents may notice what smells like rotten eggs near ditches, but it is “not a cause for alarm,” Collins said. “This is an indication that our flushing and pumping is working.”
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