"with burns from 30% to 70% of their bodies..."

The accumulation of aluminium fines/dust was considered merely a housekeeping nuisance. Overtime fires and/or explosions would occur with little notice throughout the industry. Only after a catastrophe where hundreds died did our industry finally realize  the severity of this hazard. Now almost every plant we tour acknowledge the hazard of aluminium fine fires and explosions. Here is a recent incident involving this hazard:

Two local men and eight migrants were injured in a massive explosion of magnesium and aluminum powder at a factory that specialized in manufacturing bike parts in Asia one day during the first week in May 2018.

The local fire brigade received an emergency call just before 3pm from a factory at Section 3 after a metal dust explosion. Ten workers suffered burn injuries of varying degrees, the local newspaper reported.

The injured workers were sent to a local hospital. Five had sustained minor injuries with burns from just 3% to 7% of their body surface.

However, four other workers were in a serious condition, with burns from 30% to 70% of their bodies, while a local man was reported to be in a critical condition with 100% burns all over his body and put in a special burns unit.

A preliminary investigation found that magnesium and aluminum powder had accumulated in a 10-square-meter work area where metal scraping was done. The powder had been ignited by spark, which set off a massive and sudden explosion.

We pray for that the injured workers recover fully from the injuries. Sadly we acknowledge that many of the most severely burned workers will succumb to their injuries. For those who do die from their injuries we will pray for the family, friends, and co-workers.

The Aluminium Times had some articles about this topic.

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