Federal report blames safety failures in deadly Chattanooga explosion
Molten oxidizing salt erupting from the oxidizing tank / TS USA
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — A new federal report points to major safety failures in a deadly explosion last year at a Chattanooga metal treatment facility.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) says the blast at Techniques Surfaces USA (TS USA) on May 30, 2024 killed one and caused more than $1 million in damage.
The plant was also shut down for nearly eight months.
The explosion happened during a liquid nitriding process.
A metal roller containing trapped water was placed into a 800°F molten salt bath.
The water turned to steam, building pressure inside the roller.
That pressure caused a violent eruption of molten salt, which severely burned an employee.
The worker suffered second and third-degree burns over 95% of his body.
The worker died later that day, and three others were treated for minor injuries.
Investigators say TS USA lacked proper hazard analysis, safety procedures, and employee training.
The company also failed to act on warnings from three past incidents at other facilities owned by its parent company, HEF Groupe.
The CSB issued seven recommendations to prevent future incidents.
These include installing barriers near salt baths, improving safety systems, and sharing safety lessons across all HEF Groupe sites.
“This terrible incident underscores how critically important it is for facilities like TS USA to have a comprehensive and effective safety management system in place. The absence of strong process safety protocols—and the failure to apply lessons from past similar events—put TS USA’s workers at serious risk, with one of them tragically being killed.”
– Steve Owens, CSB Chairperson
The CSB does not issue fines but provides safety guidance to help prevent future disasters.
