OSHA: Officials Knew Of Issues Years Before Wisconsin Oil Refinery Blast

Officials at a Wisconsin oil refinery knew of potential issues up to a decade prior to a massive explosion in 2018 that injured 36 and forced the evacuation of many of the 27,000 residents, according to an article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Wisconsin Public Radio reportedly secured nearly 1,300 pages of documents from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that reveal known equipment issues at the refinery then owned by Husky Energy in the days and years leading up to the April 26, 2018 blast in Superior, Wisconsin.

The refinery reportedly was shutting down its fluid catalytic cracking unit when the blast occurred. According to the Journal Sentinel, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board determined in August of 2018 that “internal wear on the spent catalyst slide valve likely caused the explosion by failing to separate air and hydrocarbons between the reactor and regenerator.” A report from OSHA’s Health Response Team said officials knew about erosion on the valve for at least a decade. Operator logs also noted that the valve was malfunctioning the week leading up to the incident, according to the article.

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