T2 Laboratories explosion and fire
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The T2 Laboratories explosion and fire occurred on December 19, 2007, in Jacksonville, Florida, resulting in the deaths of four people and the injury of fourteen others.[1][2] T2 Laboratories Inc. was a facility that specialized in the design and manufacture of specialty chemicals primarily for gasoline additives.[3][4]
The explosion's force was equivalent to detonating about a ton of TNT and it spread debris up to a mile from the plant.[5] Following the explosion, every hazardous-materials unit in Jacksonville and over 100 firefighters fought the ensuing blaze, which a spokesman termed a "hellish inferno".[2]
The blast killed Robert Scott Gallagher; Charles Budds Bolchoz, 48; Karey Renard Henry, 35; and Parrish Lamar Ashley, 36.[2] At the time of his death, Gallagher was Marketing Director for T2 Labs.[6] The company laid off its workers and shut down in the following months.[7] Fourteen people were hospitalized for chemical exposure or their injuries after the blast.[2]
In September 2009, a report was released by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board as to the cause of the accident.[8] The explosion occurred in a 2500-gallon batch reactor during production of methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl. The reactor cooling system, which lacked backups, failed; this led to a thermal runaway.
References
- ↑ "Plant Blast is Worst U.S. Industrial Accident in Nearly 3 Years". Retrieved 2008-01-03.
- 1 2 3 4 "Chemical Reactor Rupture Suspected In Fatal Lab Explosion, Safety Board Says". Retrieved 2008-01-03.
- ↑ "T2 Labs - Manufacturer of gasoline additives". Retrieved 2008-01-03.
- ↑ "T2 Labs is the manufacturer of Ecotane". Retrieved 2008-01-03.
- ↑ "Overheated chamber triggered chemical lab blast". Archived from the original on 2008-03-09. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
- ↑ "Contact T2 Labs Inc.". Retrieved 2008-01-03.
- ↑ https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=TESTIMONIES&p_id=1482
- ↑ http://www.chemsafety.gov/UserFiles/file/T2%20Final%20Report.pdf
External links
Coordinates: 30°26′02″N 81°34′05″W / 30.434°N 81.568°W