"This felt like a bomb going off. It was one big, loud explosion..."

Aluminium dust/fines for so long were considered a nuisance byproduct. Aluminium fines were allowed to accumulate throughout aluminium plants. The nuisance byproduct label quickly disappeared when aluminium dust/fine explosions occurred in our industry. Here is a recent story that emphasizes the hazard of aluminium dust/fines accumulations resulting in explosions and fires:

An explosion and fire possibly caused by a dust buildup at a Western United States metal-polishing shop injured 11 people one morning during the week of April 27, 2014.
Authorities say eight people have been hurt, three critically, in an explosion and fire at a commercial building.

The blast occurred in an overhead duct system shortly before 10 a.m. in an industrial area suburb. It took more than 50 firefighters about 40 minutes to douse the resulting fire.

TV news reports showed workers with blackened faces and hands outside the plant, which was identified on a company website as (redacted). It is part of (redacted) which plates and polishes metal, particularly car wheels.

An operations manager at the neighboring business, told the local newspaper that he felt the explosion in his office. "It made my heart jump up into my throat," the operations manager said. "This felt like a bomb going off. It was one big, loud explosion and a steam sound after that."

The operations manager ran outside and saw about 20 to 30 employees from the polishing company standing outside the burning building.

"It was chaotic. A couple of people I saw were burned, badly burned," he said. "They had their shirts off."

The blast and fire injured 11 people, including two men who were taken to hospitals in critical condition with third-degree burns over 90 percent of their bodies, County Fire Department Inspector said. Most of the others suffered smoke inhalation, he said. A preliminary investigation suggested lint and dust in a duct system caused the explosion, County Fire Department Inspector said.

An employee, told the local newspaper that the employees were polishing tire rims at the time of the explosion.

The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog prays for the quick and full recovery of both the physical and mental injuries that the burned workers in this incident suffered. This facility polished aluminium wheels.

The North American Die Casting Association (NADCA) has a great Powerpoint presentation titled:The Preventing Dust Explosions and Fires in the Die Casting Industry. This presentation is useful for any plant that generates aluminium fines. The presentation can be downloaded here.

The Aluminum Association has a great document titled: Guidelines for Handling Aluminum Fines Generated During Various Aluminum Fabricating Operations. It can be viewed here.

Occupational Safety & Health Administration released last year a new guideline titled: Firefighting Precautions at Facilities with Combustible Dust Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which can be found here.

The Aluminium Times Magazine had a column about aluminium fine safety last year shown below. 

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