Three Killed in Fire at South Korean Paint Raw-Material Plant
Need to Know
- Three people died in an explosion and fire at Daewon Industrial’s fatty-acid plant in Cheonan, South Korea.
- Another worker suffered serious burns, and a firefighter was injured during the response.
- South Korea’s labor ministry ordered work stopped and formed a 15-member team to investigate the accident.
Three people were killed and two others were injured Aug. 28 in an explosion and fire at Daewon Industrial Co. Ltd.’s fatty-acid manufacturing plant in Cheonan, South Korea.
The fire began at approximately 11:44 a.m. local time. Twenty-one people were at the facility, and 17 were able to evacuate, according to Yonhap News Agency’s reporting, which cited provincial fire authorities. One worker suffered serious burns, while a firefighter was injured after being struck by falling material. The fire was extinguished approximately four hours after it began.
South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor ordered work stopped at the facility and formed a 15-member investigation team. The ministry said the team will examine the accident’s immediate and structural causes and determine whether workplace-safety requirements were violated. Police and fire authorities also plan to conduct a joint forensic inspection.
The cause of the explosion and fire has not been determined. Authorities have said the incident occurred in a factory building containing flammable materials, but they have not identified a specific material, process or equipment failure as the cause.
Daewon describes itself as a large-scale Korean manufacturer of fatty acids and glycerin derived from animal and vegetable oils. The company’s official product information lists soybean fatty acids for synthetic resins, paints, varnishes and inks; cardanol oil for paints, varnishes and phenolic resins; and glycerin for paint, varnish and printing applications.
No company incident statement was located as of publication. There is also no verified information yet on the extent of plant damage, affected production lines, inventory, customer shipments or a possible restart timetable.
Sources: Yonhap News Agency incident report and Daewon Industrial product information.
The incident is relevant to PCI readers following paint and coating resins and polymers and the operating conditions affecting coatings raw-material supply.
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