Washington, DC, November 22, 2006 - The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is deploying an investigation team to begin an assessment of the explosion that occurred at CAI, Inc. in Danvers, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston.
Media reports indicate the explosion occurred around 3:00 a.m. today, injuring several residents and damaging homes. Flammable solvents were on site at the time of the incident. The blast was felt by residents several miles away. CAI, Inc. is a manufacturer of adhesives, inks, and coatings.
The CSB team will be led by supervising investigator John Vorderbrueggen, P.E., and will be accompanied by CSB Board Member William E. Wright. Team members will arrive at the CAI facility in Massachusetts Friday morning to begin their investigative work.
The investigators will collect information that will assist the Board in deciding whether to conduct a full investigation of the causes of the incident. This initial assessment includes interviewing employees and others who may have witnessed the accident or have relevant information, requesting documents that may help determine the process and chemicals involved, and conducting an inspection of the accident site and neighboring damage.
The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents. The agency's board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. CSB investigations look into all aspects of chemical accidents, including physical causes such as equipment failure as well as inadequacies in safety management systems, regulations, and industry standards.
The Board does not issue citations or fines but does make safety recommendations to plants, industry organizations, labor groups, and regulatory agencies such as OSHA and EPA. Visit our website, www.csb.gov.
For more information, contact CSB Director of Public Affairs Dr. Daniel Horowitz, (202) 441-6074 (cell); Sandy Gilmour (202) 251-5496 (cell); Jennifer Jones (202) 577-8448 (cell)