"Seven people were injured in a blast..."

 

The use of scrap as a source of metal for furnaces is growing exponentially. With that growth the unfortunate fact that low quality scrap that 5 years ago would not have be used, is now commonly sourced. This incident highlights the hazard of sourcing low grade scrap.

 

Seven people were injured in a blast that took place at an aluminium angle and channel factory here on Saturday.

 

The condition of the three injured, shifted to a hospital (40 km away), is said to be serious. The other four were admitted to a local private hospital.

The seriously injured are (name omitted) (20), (name omitted)  (26) and (name omitted) (26).

 

(name omitted) (19), (name omitted) (45), (name omitted) (19) and (name omitted) (31) were admitted to a Hospital at (in the town where the explosion occurred).

Though the (local) police are yet to register a case, preliminary investigation revealed that the blast took place after workers pressed a lot of scrap containing small-sized aluminium cylinders in a bailing machine.

 

None of the injured or workers present at the factory could explain the sequence of events. “We don’t remember what caused the explosion. Only what I can recollect is that we, a group of seven workers, were working on a bailing machine that compresses scrap to be melted in a furnace,” said (name omitted), one of the injured.

 

Another news media article added:

 

Assistant commissioner of police said the factory processed aluminium scrap into bars and logs and the owner had set up labour quarters in the factory premises for the workers.

 

We pray that the injured workers recover fully from their injuries. We doubt we will find out if the most seriously injured workers survive. The rule of thumb regarding 3^rd degree burns is multiple the percent of burns by 2. If the answer is over 100 the worker typically succumbs to their injuries. Though we do not know the extent we pray that the recover.

News media published this photo after the aftermath. These aluminum pressure vessels are an example of low grade scrap.

Let’s discuss low grade scrap. Low grade scrap is cheap. In our opinion that is the main reason why it is purchased. Low grade scrap includes but not limited to containers that hole liquid/fuel, crimped tubing, etc. The vast majority of companies will not purchase low grade scrap because they acknowledge the hazards associated with it and simply do not want to bring that danger into their workplace. But, sadly there are companies who either through a lack of awareness or education purchase low grade scrap. This danger becomes known when an incident occurs. There have been numerous incidents involving aluminium plants being destroyed because of low grade scrap. With that countless workers have been injured and killed. 

The incident below was because of charging low grade scrap. Two workers were killed. The governmental report recommended that a shredder be employed to prevent a recurrence of this tragedy.

Please note we are not saying ban low grade scrap. What we are saying is understand the hazards associated with low grade scrap. Education is the key with any hazard. The Aluminum Association in the USA has a great document detailing the hazard associated with scrap. It can be found here.

Another useful resource is from Logan Aluminum in the USA. They are a great workplace we commonly cite on the best practices toward safety. Logan Aluminum has a tremendous webpage about scrap. It was put together to educate their suppliers to what Logan Aluminum requires regarding incoming scrap. It can be viewed here.

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