Chemical flash-fire singes Curwood/Bemis worker
July 2, 2013
by Meat&Poultry Staff
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BATAVIA, Ill. – A Curwood/Bemis employee at a facility in Batavia, Ill., was slightly injured on the morning of July 1 due to a chemical flash fire. After the fire slightly singed his forearms, he received medical treatment, reports the Kane Country Chronicle.
Although local firefighters arrived at the scene at 11:12 a.m. and had the blaze under control within eight minutes, it caused an estimated $5,000 in damage to the building and its contents. The Batavia Fire Department reports the flash-fire began when an employee mixed flammable chemicals without proper grounding; a static-electricity charge may have sparked the blaze.
As a result, the ceiling of the flammable liquids storage room was singed, which caused a foam system to activate and flood the room with a fire suppressant foam preventing the fire from doing further damage.
Curwood/Bemis is a leading provider of value-added packaging and packaging machinery.