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dpatopbilder - Damage at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. after the implosion of a tank containing hazardous liquid. Photo: Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times/dpa - ATTENTION: For editorial use only and only with full attribution of the above credit
Keystone
After the accident on the premises of a packaging company in the northwest of the USA, six of the nine workers who were last thought to be missing have been found dead. This was announced by the fire department at a press conference. This brings the number of confirmed fatalities to eight. However, the fire department had already announced the day before that it no longer expected to find any survivors.
On Tuesday, a huge tank containing white liquor burst on the premises of the company, which manufactures cartons for liquids. According to the fire department, the tank has a capacity of more than 3.4 million liters. The evacuation work proved difficult because the tank was initially considered to be in danger of collapsing. Eight people were taken to hospital with injuries.
The site of the packaging plant borders directly on the Columbia River, which separates the states of Washington and Oregon. According to the fire department, some of the white liquor leaked into the river during the accident.
In addition, contaminated liquid entered a dike network that runs through the entire community of Longview, said an employee of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). "It literally runs through residents' gardens." This could be dangerous for people and pets.
According to the EPA, work is also underway to flush the liquid from the levee system so that it does not enter the community's drinking water supplies. So far, however, samples of the drinking water have shown no danger.
29.05.2026, 01:15
29.05.2026, 06:45
