Beginner

A big tank at a paper factory broke in Longview, Washington. The tank held strong and harmful chemicals. The chemicals spilled out across the factory.

At least eleven people died. Many workers could not be found at first. Rescue teams came quickly to search for the missing workers.

The factory makes paper from wood. It is one of the biggest factories in Washington state. The accident happened early on the morning of May 26.

The governor of Washington, Bob Ferguson, said this could be the worst factory accident in the state's history. He sent rescue teams to help. The families of the workers are very sad and worried.

tank

a large container that holds liquid

factory

a building where things are made by machines and workers

chemical

a substance that can be dangerous if it touches your skin or if you breathe it in

spill

when liquid escapes from its container and flows out

rescue

to save someone who is in danger

accident

something bad that happens by mistake and was not planned

governor

the leader of a state in the United States

missing

not able to be found; lost

Elementary

A very large chemical tank at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. pulp and paper mill in Longview, Washington, suddenly failed on May 26. The tank held about 900,000 gallons of a corrosive liquid called white liquor, which is used to turn wood into paper pulp. At least eleven workers were killed.

White liquor is a mixture of sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide. These chemicals can cause serious burns if they touch skin. When the tank broke, hundreds of thousands of gallons poured across the site, making rescue work very difficult and dangerous for emergency teams.

Washington's governor, Bob Ferguson, said the state was preparing for this to be the deadliest industrial accident in modern state history. The mill employs about 1,000 workers and is one of the largest paper factories in the Pacific Northwest region.

Federal safety investigators are expected to open a formal investigation into the cause of the tank failure. Industry experts noted that chemical storage tanks in paper mills are carefully regulated, but failures can occur due to corrosion or poor maintenance over time.

pulp mill

a factory that turns wood into soft material used to make paper

corrosive

able to burn or destroy materials through chemical action

white liquor

a liquid mixture of strong chemicals used in the papermaking process to break down wood

sodium hydroxide

a very strong chemical that can cause severe burns, also called lye

sodium sulfide

a compound used in paper production that has a strong smell and is harmful to skin

industrial

relating to factories and large-scale manufacturing

corrosion

the gradual weakening of metal caused by chemical reactions with the environment

regulate

to control something using official rules and inspections

Intermediate

A catastrophic industrial accident struck Longview, Washington on May 26, when a 900,000-gallon storage tank at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. pulp and paper mill suddenly ruptured. Between 550,000 and 570,000 gallons of white liquor - a highly corrosive mixture of sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide - poured across the facility, creating a toxic environment that cost at least eleven workers their lives and halted rescue efforts for hours.

White liquor is a central ingredient in the Kraft pulping process, the dominant method by which wood chips are chemically converted into paper pulp. The liquid works by dissolving lignin, the compound that binds wood fibres together. While highly effective in papermaking, it is extremely dangerous to human tissue and produces hazardous vapors that pose serious respiratory risks if inhaled.

Governor Bob Ferguson described the situation as one in which the state was bracing for this to be the deadliest industrial tragedy in modern Washington state history. Emergency responders worked in difficult conditions as the chemical spill flooded sections of the facility, making standard search-and-rescue techniques nearly impossible to carry out.

Federal investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are expected to open a formal inquiry. Industry analysts noted that while chemical storage in paper mills is heavily regulated, tank failures can result from corrosion, maintenance lapses, or structural fatigue that builds up over many years of operation.

catastrophic

involving sudden, severe damage or destruction with serious consequences

Kraft pulping process

the industrial method that uses strong chemicals to convert wood chips into paper pulp

lignin

a natural compound that binds wood fibres together and must be removed during papermaking

respiratory

relating to the process of breathing; affecting the lungs or airways

toxic

poisonous or very harmful to living things

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

the U.S. government agency responsible for enforcing workplace safety regulations, commonly known as OSHA

structural fatigue

the gradual weakening of a material or structure from repeated stress and pressure over time

lapses

failures to meet a required standard; periods of poor attention or neglect

Advanced

What began as a routine Tuesday morning at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. mill in Longview, Washington, became one of the most devastating industrial disasters in the Pacific Northwest's recent history when a 900,000-gallon white-liquor storage tank failed without warning at approximately 7:15 a.m. on May 26. The resulting deluge - estimated at between 550,000 and 570,000 gallons of a caustic brine comprising sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide - inundated sections of the facility, transforming the recovery operation into a hazmat-scale emergency that stranded workers in pockets of the plant inaccessible to conventional rescue equipment.

White liquor sits at the heart of the Kraft pulping process, a century-old method that remains the dominant route to chemical cellulose production worldwide. At a pH approaching 14 and with significant hydrogen sulfide off-gassing potential, the liquid poses acute risks of chemical burns to exposed skin and mucous membranes, as well as respiratory injury from vapor inhalation. These hazards compelled incident commanders to proceed in slow, equipment-intensive increments rather than the rapid-extraction protocols typical of conventional industrial rescues.

Governor Bob Ferguson, overseeing emergency response coordination alongside state officials, told a news conference that Washington was bracing for this to be the deadliest industrial tragedy in modern state history. The mill, which employs roughly 1,000 workers and processes timber from the Columbia River basin, had operated under Washington State Department of Ecology permits that impose strict containment and monitoring requirements on chemical storage - requirements whose adequacy will now fall under intense federal and state scrutiny.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is expected to open a formal inspection under 29 C.F.R. Part 1910, which governs process safety management of highly hazardous chemicals at facilities where they are present above threshold quantities. Investigators will likely examine maintenance logs, structural inspection records, and corrosion-monitoring data for the failed tank. Industrial chemists note that white-liquor tanks are subject to accelerated internal corrosion from sulfide-containing environments, a known failure mode that prudent operators mitigate through continuous ultrasonic thickness monitoring and scheduled internal lining surveys.

caustic brine

a corrosive, highly alkaline salt solution capable of destroying organic tissue on contact

inundated

flooded or overwhelmed with a large quantity of liquid

hazmat

abbreviation for hazardous materials - substances posing a risk to health, property, or the environment

cellulose

the main structural component of plant cell walls and the primary raw material in papermaking

mucous membrane

the moist protective lining found inside body cavities such as the nose, mouth, and lungs