Two people are confirmed dead after a chemical vat imploded at the Nippon Dynawave paper mill in Longview on Tuesday. Nine others remain unaccounted for as recovery crews work under safety constraints, with decontamination planned before identification and fam
At 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, a massive chemical tank at the Nippon Dynawave paper mill in Longview imploded—suddenly enough that by Wednesday afternoon the numbers people feared had hardened into confirmed deaths and still-unaccounted-for missing workers.
Officials said the facility, at 3401 Industrial Way, houses a 900,000-gallon tank containing a highly destructive chemical called white liquor. Two people are confirmed dead: one person died at the scene, and another died after being taken to a hospital.
Governor Bob Ferguson called it “the deadliest industrial tragedy in modern Washington state history.” In the hours after the implosion, eight others—including a firefighter—were injured and taken to area hospitals for treatment. Some of those injured are being treated at the Oregon Burn Center.
Recovery efforts are under way Wednesday to find nine people who are missing and presumed dead. Officials said the work was initially delayed because of safety concerns about the structural integrity of the damaged tank.
While teams search, investigators are also trying to understand how a tank holding white liquor ended up collapsing. The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) said it will begin an investigation into the implosion, even as officials continue to manage the immediate danger.
Officials said an inspection found an estimated 90. 000 gallons of chemical product was believed to still be in the tank at first. After the inspection. officials said the remaining product is at about 25. 000 and the tank was in a stable position—allowing emergency responders to develop a plan to move forward to remove it.
The recovery process itself will not be straightforward. Officials said as people are recovered, they will undergo decontamination before being transported to the Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office for identification and family notification.
As the search continues, officials want the public to keep their distance. They said there is not a direct threat to the surrounding community. and people should continue to avoid the area and stay away from streets between Washington Way stretching to Prudential Blvd. Residents are being asked to stay clear of ditches and dikes in the city while water testing is underway.
At this time, officials said there are no negative health impacts to air quality or the City of Longview’s drinking water system, even as monitoring goes on.
Now the unanswered questions focus on what caused the tank to implode in the first place—and what it means for whether it could happen again. Officials say investigators are still looking into the cause, alongside the CSB’s separate investigation into the incident.
Longview chemical vat implosion Nippon Dynawave white liquor Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office CSB investigation Oregon Burn Center industrial tragedy
900,000 gallons?? That sounds insane, how is that even allowed by safety rules.
So they imploded the tank on purpose or it just collapsed? I saw “white liquor” and thought like… soda or something?? Either way, 2 dead is horrifying.
“White liquor” ended up collapsing… but they said it was stable after inspection? Sounds like they knew something was wrong and still went in. Also why is a firefighter missing like what were they doing there.
Longview always has stuff going on, I’m not surprised something bad happened at a paper mill. Decontamination before identification is gonna make families wait forever, and the way they word it like “presumed dead” is just cruel. Also Governor Ferguson saying modern history deadliest—so like what, nobody’s ever had an industrial accident there before?