Fatal DuPont leak shows need for improved chemical safety systems

摘要

The November 15 chemical leak at DuPont's plant in La Porte, Texas was the company's third fatal US accident in five years and the deadliest of them all. The blast took the lives of four workers, including two brothers. According to US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) investigators probing the case, it appears to have been preventable. "We have found that not only DuPont, but the industry as a whole, must do much better," said Rafael Moure-Eraso, chairperson of the CSB. "Complex process-related accidents with tragic results are taking place across the country at companies of all sizes," he said. "This problem includes major corporations such as DuPont, not just smaller companies that some refer to as 'outliers.' It is clear that the current process safety regulatory system is in need of reform, and that companies themselves must do more." The La Porte case follows two other fatal accidents in 2010 at DuPont facilities in Belle, West Virginia and Buffalo, New York. "The frequency of these incidents is a concern for the Board as well as for DuPont, its workers, [their] family members and the communities nearby," Moure-Eraso said.