Jumbled wreckage complicates U.S. chocolate factory blast probe
Jumbled wreckage complicates U.S. chocolate factory blast probe
Emergency personnel work at the site of a deadly explosion at a chocolate factory in West Reading, Pa., Friday, March 24, 2023. (Jeff Doelp/Reading Eagle via AP)
WEST READING, Pa. -
Investigators looking for the cause of a deadly explosion that levelled part of a Pennsylvania chocolate factory faced an even more difficult task Monday as they combed through wreckage that was extensively picked apart and moved around during the intensive weekend search for victims and survivors.
Seven people were killed and several others wounded in the powerful blast at the R.M Palmer Co. plant in West Reading, Pennsylvania, about 60 miles (96 kilometres) northwest of Philadelphia. One survivor was pulled from the rubble hours after the explosion rattled windows and shook houses.
With the recovery effort now over, attention turned to identifying the cause -- a task complicated by the jumbled wreckage.
"The No. 1 goal of this, once the fire was out, gas stopped, is to look for the victims," Pennsylvania State Police Master Trooper David Beohm said at a news conference Monday afternoon. "So with that, when they picked the building apart with the excavator, yes, it makes it really hard then to try to figure out things. ... It makes it really difficult to try to come up with a cause."
Authorities declined to address reports that plant workers had detected an odor of gas before the explosion. The gas utility UGI said it had received no reports of a gas leak at the family-owned candy company.
"Everything's on the table at this point because we're still not done with the investigation. To say it's one way or another, I would not say that at this point," Beohm said. Two state police fire marshals are working to determine the cause and origin of the blast, he said.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which regulates workplace safety, was also at the site.
Natural gas wasn't the only possible cause.
Chocolate companies and other food manufacturers must take steps to mitigate the risk of fire and explosion from flammable dust produced by ingredients like cocoa powder and corn starch, said Holly Burgess, technical lead for industrial and chemical safety at the National Fire Protection Association, a non-profit group that produces hundreds of codes and standards.
Burgess said smaller particles that stay aloft pose a greater danger than bigger particles that quickly fall to the floor. Food manufacturers are supposed to determine the combustibility of the dust, perform a hazard analysis and then take steps to manage it.
"Each batch is different, so the chocolate material in cocoa that I'm getting from one place might have a bigger particle size or a smaller particle size. So that's where they usually need to do their own testing," said Burgess, speaking generally and not about the situation at Palmer.
Commercial ovens and furnaces, and commercial refrigerant using ammonia, are other primary explosive hazards at food plants, she said.
Records from OSHA, the federal workplace safety agency, show only one violation at the West Reading plant over the past five years. In 2018, an employee lost the tip of a finger during the cleaning of a pneumatically pressurized ball valve. The company agreed to pay a US$13,000 fine.
In January, records show, OSHA levied a penalty of more than US$12,000 after an inspection at R.M. Palmer's plant in nearby Wyomissing. Details of that case were not immediately available.
R.M. Palmer said in a weekend statement that everyone at the company was devastated, and it was reaching out to employees and their families through first responders and disaster recovery organizations because its communication systems were down. "The tragic events that occurred on Friday have had a profound impact on all of us at R.M. Palmer, and we appreciate the outpouring of support as all of us continue to deal with the loss of our friends and co-workers," the company said on Facebook Sunday.
The company has not commented further. It did not respond to questions from The Associated Press on Monday.
The Berks County coroner's office identified two of the victims as 49-year-old Amy Sandoe of Ephrata and 60-year-old Domingo Cruz of Reading and said "additional forensic medical examinations" would be needed to positively identify the other five victims. Autopsies were expected to be completed by the end of week, officials said.
Rescue crews had been using heat-imaging equipment and dogs to search for possible survivors after the blast destroyed one building and damaged a neighbouring building. Crews were using heavy equipment to methodically and carefully pull debris from the site, according to police Chief Wayne Holben.
Three buildings around the site were condemned as a precaution until further examination by structural engineers to ensure their safety.
Officials said they had no update on the condition of a woman pulled alive from the rubble early Saturday. Mayor Samantha Kaag has said she had apparently been on the second floor and was found in a "hopeful circumstance," calling out to rescuers despite her injuries after a dog found her.
Reading Hospital said it received 10 patients and transferred two to other facilities, while two others were admitted in good and fair condition, respectively, and the others had been discharged. Dr. Charles Barbera, the hospital's president and CEO, said one of the admitted patients was discharged Monday.
UGI spokesperson Joe Swope said the utility detected leaks at a few street-level locations some distance from the plant after the gas was turned back on, and completed repairs. "The company believes these are unrelated to the explosion at Palmer," he said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's efforts to assure Canadians that his government is adequately addressing the threat of foreign interference took a hit on Wednesday, when the majority of MPs in the House of Commons voted for special rapporteur David Johnston to 'step aside.'
Seventeen people – most of whom are young students – were hospitalized after a falling from a height during a field trip at Winnipeg's Fort Gibraltar. However, many of the children are now being discharged and sent home, according to an update from the hospital.
Although bladder cancer is the fifth most common cancer in Canada, experts say there’s a significant lack of awareness surrounding whom it affects the most — statistically, men — and that the most common risk factor is smoking.
Canada will soon require health warnings to be printed directly on individual cigarettes, making it the first country to implement this kind of measure aimed at reducing tobacco usage.
More than three years after COVID was declared a global pandemic, a new study is looking at how the international health crisis has changed the lifestyle habits of Canadians.
A year after arguing Nigeria's ruling party is responsible for terrorist acts, the Trudeau government has sent a cabinet minister to celebrate the swearing-in of its new president.
The Canadian economy grew faster than expected in the first three months of the year and likely expanded again in April, fuelling speculation that the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates again.
Statistics Canada says fewer fresh fruits and vegetables were available to Canadians in 2022, due to factors such as ongoing supply chain issues, labour shortages and price increases.
Seventeen people – most of whom are young students – were hospitalized after a falling from a height during a field trip at Winnipeg's Fort Gibraltar. However, many of the children are now being discharged and sent home, according to an update from the hospital.
A Quebec forensics company promised millions of dollars in bribes to officials in the Philippines, including a cabinet minister and his brother, as it sought lucrative police contracts, according to a statement of facts attached to a deal the firm struck to avoid prosecution in Canada.
The Canadian economy grew faster than expected in the first three months of the year and likely expanded again in April, fuelling speculation that the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates again.
Families of passengers who died in the crash of a Boeing 737 Max in Ethiopia can seek damages for the pain and terror suffered by victims in the minutes before the plane flew nose-down into the ground, a federal judge has ruled.
He's heir to the throne in one of the oldest monarchies in the Middle East and a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. She's a Saudi architect with an aristocratic pedigree of her own.
A former limousine company manager was sentenced Wednesday to at least five years in prison for his role in a crash that killed 20 people in rural New York.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's efforts to assure Canadians that his government is adequately addressing the threat of foreign interference took a hit on Wednesday, when the majority of MPs in the House of Commons voted for special rapporteur David Johnston to 'step aside.'
Statistics Canada says fewer fresh fruits and vegetables were available to Canadians in 2022, due to factors such as ongoing supply chain issues, labour shortages and price increases.
Although bladder cancer is the fifth most common cancer in Canada, experts say there’s a significant lack of awareness surrounding whom it affects the most — statistically, men — and that the most common risk factor is smoking.
Canada will soon require health warnings to be printed directly on individual cigarettes, making it the first country to implement this kind of measure aimed at reducing tobacco usage.
Facebook owner Meta Platforms said on Wednesday it would remove news content in its home state of California if the state government passed legislation forcing tech companies to pay publishers for journalistic content.
A third man has been charged in the 2002 shooting death of Run-DMC star Jam Master Jay, prosecutors said Tuesday, marking the latest movement in a case that languished for years.
Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) said Wednesday venture capital lending dropped in 2022 and is expected to remain slow as companies grapple with higher interest rates, a wave of tech layoffs and the fallout from the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank.
Hard-fought to the end, the debt ceiling and budget cuts package is heading toward a crucial U.S. House vote as President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy assemble a coalition of centrist Democrats and Republicans to push it to passage over fierce blowback from conservatives and some progressive dissent.
Locals call it "watermelon salad." But this delicacy popular in the southern Gaza Strip at this time of year is far from the sweet, refreshing taste the name evokes.
More than three years after COVID was declared a global pandemic, a new study is looking at how the international health crisis has changed the lifestyle habits of Canadians.
A 15-year-old soccer player has died after suffering severe brain injuries during a post-match brawl with an opposing team at an international youth tournament in Germany over the weekend, officials said Wednesday.
French Sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera said Wednesday that Novak Djokovic's political message about Kosovo was 'not appropriate' and warned the former top-ranked Serb player that he should not do it again.
The U.S. government's auto safety agency plans to require that all new passenger cars and light trucks include potentially life-saving automatic emergency braking and meet stricter safety standards within three years.
Shopping for a new electric vehicle can seem a bit like the Wild West. While most people are familiar with Tesla and established automakers, they're less likely to know much about all-new companies looking to replicate the success of Tesla and take a share of the quickly growing market. Edmunds highlights five EV startups for shoppers willing to take the plunge.
Emergency personnel work at the site of a deadly explosion at a chocolate factory in West Reading, Pa., Friday, March 24, 2023. (Jeff Doelp/Reading Eagle via AP)
