The reactor pressure increased rapidly. Solvent vapors vented from the reactor’s manway, forming a flammable cloud inside the building. The vapors found an ignition source, and the resulting explosion killed one worker and injured 14. The blast destroyed the facility (Figure 1) and damaged off-site structures.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) found that the reactor lacked basic safeguards to prevent, detect, and mitigate runaway reactions, and that essential safety management practices were not in place.