LaPorte, TX– In a shocking allegation, a lawyer from Texas, apparently representing the family of one of the victims, has said that the DuPont facility at LaPorte, Texas, where a massive chemical leak of deadly chemical Methyl Mercaptan took place on 15th Nov 2014, did not provide proper working respirators to the workers in the facility. To make matters worse, the building where the leakage happened was a 5 story enclosed building that did not have any ventilation, because the forced ventilation system fans were not working!
Based on the statements of co-workers, it has emerged that when the accident occurred, apparently alarm went off, after which a worker by the name of Gilbert Tisnado took three emergency air packs offering 3-5 minutes of contained air and ran inside to investigate. His brother, Robert was working inside the unit. However these air packs did not help, as both the brothers tragically were found dead alongwith a supervisor by the name of Wade Baker, say reports online.
To recap, four people working at the DuPont plant at LaPorte near Houston in Texas, were killed when methyl mercaptan, a toxic chemical used as feedstock to make insecticides and fungicide, was released into the air. The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has taken cognizance of this accident and already deployed its investigative team to the site, however they are unable to actually visit the place where the leak took place, as DuPont has not yet declared the area safe enough to enter, even after 5 days after the accident took place. The CSB investigators began interviews of several DuPont personnel, with plans being made to interview shift workers and other possible witnesses to the events that led to a release of highly toxic methyl mercaptan. They are being aided by representatives of the International Chemical Workers Union Council.
Lead investigator for the CSB, one Mr. Banks said that ” We have asked the company to preserve the status of the process, valve and other equipment settings as close as possible to where they were at the time of the accident to aid in our investigation.”