WASHINGTON -
A massive
explosion and fire at the CAI/Arnel ink and paint products manufacturing
facility in November 2006 occurred because CAI lacked safeguards such as alarms
and automatic shutoffs that would have prevented a 10,000-pound mixture of
flammable solvents from overheating in the unattended building, investigators
from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) said in a final draft report.
Steam
heat to the mixing tank was most likely inadvertently left on by an operator
before he left for the day. As the temperature increased, vapor escaped from
the mixing tank, built up in the unventilated building, ignited and exploded.
CSB
investigators said that ink manufacturer CAI did not follow regulations or
appropriate good practices for the handling of flammable solvents. The CSB
report proposes changes to national fire codes and to state licensing and
inspection procedures to improve the safety and oversight of facilities
handling hazardous materials.
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