Community Corner
Federal Investigation Into Massive Chemical Explosion in North Andover Ongoing
The purpose of the federal investigation is to determine if there were any violations of OSHA workplace safety and health standards.
Photo Credit: 7News/whdh.com
NORTH ANDOVER, MA - The investigation into the massive explosion in a chemical lab that critically injured four people on Jan. 7 at the Dow Chemical plant on Willow Road. is ongoing and is expected to continue for several months, according to state and federal officials.
Fire investigators were back on scene on Wednesday, according to the state fire marshal’s office. Investigators continue to interview people, and plan to interview the hospitalized victims as soon as they recover sufficiently, according to Jennifer Mieth, Public Information Officer, for the state’s Department of Fire Services.
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That may take some time, according to Mieth, and the investigation will not conclude until that happens.
The state’s bomb squad detonated hazardous chemicals from site of the Dow lab explosion the day after the explosion rocked the neighborhood.
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The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is also looking into the explosion.
The purpose of the federal investigation is to determine if there are any violations of OSHA workplace safety and health standards in connection with the explosion, according to .Ted Fitzgerald, Regional Director for Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Labor
According to Fitzgerald, if the inspection identifies violations, then OSHA could issue citations to DOW, and/or, propose fines for the employer.
OSHA has up to six months to complete its inspection.
While most inspections don’t take that long, according to Fitzgerald, an inspection such as this, involving an incident and injuries, will likely take a few months.
A worker was killed in a chemical explosion at the same plant in 2013. The cause of the explosion in 2013 was exposure of Trimethylindium, a pyrophoric chemical, in the air.
The North Andover plant is located about 25 miles north of Boston.
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