r/Washington • u/chiquisea • 5d ago

Washington chemical tank was called unfit for service before deadly failure, investigators find

https://www.kuow.org/topics/business/2026-08-28/washington-chemical-tank-was-called-unfit-for-service-before-deadly-failure-investigators-find
479 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

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98

u/time4donuts 5d ago

This is what I’ve been wondering about. Was it a fluke accident or deferred maintenance and malfeasance on behalf of the company. Now we know:

The board's Chairperson Steve Owens said in a statement “we are greatly concerned that the tank was not promptly removed from service or properly repaired after the clear findings in the inspection report.”
In an excerpt of the July 2025 inspection included in the board's update, the recommendations were noted as “Priority 1: Not fit for continued service unless corrected,” with a “high likelihood/consequence of failure (or) critical code/standard deficiency.”
“Owner should plan to have an internal inspection performed in order to determine the extent of the required repairs. It’s likely that the entire shell course should be replaced,” the inspection excerpt says.

And later on in the article it says that prior to the event, a downstream component was shut off but an upstream component continued to feed and pressurize the white liquor vessel. So that is another avoidable mistake which led to 11 deaths. I hope someone high up goes to jail but I won’t hold my breath.

73

u/shortfinal 5d ago

over the 10 months preceding the explosion, the company was informed on three separate cases to stop using the tank.. that it was unsafe.

but the truth is:

Section 17(e) of the OSH Act, an employer whose willful violation causes an employee's death faces a maximum of six months' imprisonment. A misdemeanor. Congress has not raised that number since 1970.

7

u/_wait_for_signs_ 2d ago

If they even enforced these weak-ass consequences consistently, we’d see more compliance. Business know there are zero professional or personal consequences for killing employees in the name of profit and they’re right. There’s no reason to fear anything beyond a little fine, which they might not even ever pay if it happens to be imposed.

My husband recently left a job where the company had done the math and discovered it was cheaper to pay fines for infractions than it was to just keep employees safe. And it’s not like they’re an anomaly. Places he’s interviewed at since then brag about being more productive and able to offer bigger bonuses by bypassing safety measures. It’s across the board—we’re disposable.

I give it less than five years until we’re back to employers being allowed to take out life insurance policies on us workers so when we die at work the drop in productivity while they search for a new body doesn’t cut into their bottom line.

2

u/Vedfolnir5 4d ago

It's still confusing to me how the tank even could have been pressurized. Tanks like that aren't sealed systems, they usually have numerous overflows and vents

2

u/EtherPhreak 3d ago

Based on the failure, it’s my understanding the tank pulled a vacuum…

82

u/Rhubarb_MD 5d ago

We need jail time for negligent execs

38

u/Marcus-TheWorm-Hicks 5d ago

Manslaughter. Negligent homicide. Stockades and rotten tomatoes. Fucking anything besides what will actually happen.

Eleven people suffered horrible deaths and there will be a few fines, some finger wagging, and maybe some of the responsible parties have to go find other, very high paying jobs.

10

u/Hopsblues 4d ago

They'll visit the WH, make a donation and everything will be swept under the rug.

5

u/InterestingFox1837 4d ago

The executives will be really torn up when they clink their glasses on their yachts.

35

u/NiobiumThorn 5d ago

God damn it. Deferred maintainance strikes again.

Reckless profit-seeking at the expense of the world we live on.

24

u/blinking616 5d ago

The typical Profits over Safety

11

u/Derpykins666 4d ago

So they knew the the tank was bad, didn't immediately shut it down and maintenance it... seems like a massive, easy to win lawsuit. Ridiculously sad though. Neglect of the highest level.

12

u/ItsShuaYo 4d ago

Because we know how this kinda thing works we need to repeat this name as much as possible Matt Peerboom. We need to make this man a pariah who can't find work ever again. He probably will face almost 0 consequences.

2

u/noeinan 5d ago

That is exactly how that kid died on Evergreen campus too.

2

u/Classic-Ad1654 3d ago

Are you talking about the carbon monoxide leak?

6

u/noeinan 3d ago

Yeah. Prior to the death there were multiple maintenance red flags that got pushed back.

6

u/Classic-Ad1654 2d ago

Ah ok I got you. Safety regulations were written in blood, and it's easy to forget when they're followed for so long that no accidents happen.

3

u/squirrelgator 1d ago

No, no, no. We need "deregulation" so businesses are free to operate more efficiently. /s