Report: Sugar company ignored dangers before blast

SAVANNAH - A federal agency says Imperial Sugar and managers at its Georgia refinery ignored known dangers of explosive dust for decades before a 2008 explosion killed 14 workers.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board released results of its investigation Thursday. It finds that the company likely could have prevented the deaths with routine housekeeping at the plant near Savannah.

The agency says internal memos at the refinery contained warnings about dust written in the 1960s.

The report says the initial explosion came from a conveyor belt used to move sugar that had a steel cover that trapped dust until it exploded like gunpowder. The agency says the first blast kicked up sugar dust coating other areas, causing secondary explosions that likely killed the employees.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2009/9/223490