"Two people suffered injuries, one of them major, after an explosion"

The Aluminium Plant Safety Blog has posted recently numerous incidents of molten metal explosions. Most commonly explosions occur when moisture (water) and molten metal interact. Here is a recent incident.

Two people suffered injuries, one of them major, after an explosion at a recycling (remelt) plant in one morning during the first week in March in the United States.

According to the local Police Department, the explosion took place at 7:30 a.m.

The blast occurred when water from the morning's flash flooding leaked into the building and came into contact with melted aluminum, said chief of the County Office of Emergency Management.

A male employee suffered critical injuries and was transported to 96 kilometers a Medical Center's burn unit.

Another male employee was also injured but refused treatment, chief of the County Office of Emergency Management said.

We pray that the injured worker recovers fully from his burns. News media reports stated that water leaked into the plant and came into contact with molten metal. There could be numerous incidents on how that occurred. Charging of wet scrap or moisture in the sow molds are the most common reasons for explosions in remelt facilities with similar products. Due to the roof damage, we would assume that a wet mold was the source of the explosion.

We also wanted to comment on the worker that refused treatment. It is our opinion that the worker should have been instructed to get looked at by medical personnel. There have been incidents where workers refused treatment and later had complications from their injuries. If you have a worker who refuses medical help. Please first ask them why they are refusing? There normally is one reason. It could be either scheduling (have to pick up their children, lack of funds, etc.). Regardless of the reason, the aluminium company needs to make sure that the injured personnel see the appropriate medical personnel. Lastly, we would recommend that in these instances to send a manager with the individual to the hospital. That will ensure that the worker actually enters the hospital, versus walking away. 

We will update the post as further information is released.

Please comment.