Sierra Chemical faces big $1 million fine

Brendan Riley

Wednesday, May 6, 1998 | 9 a.m.

CARSON CITY - Nevada will seek fines totaling $1 million against Sierra Chemical Co. because of inadequate controls that figured in a Jan. 7 explosion that killed four and injured six at its plant near Reno, The Associated Press has learned.

Ron Swirczek, administrator of the state Division of Industrial Relations, planned to provide details on the big fine at a meeting today in Reno of the Commission on Workplace Safety and Community Protection.

The fine, which could be appealed by Sierra Chemical, is the largest to be imposed by the state in recent history.

A spokesman for Sierra Chemical didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

Word of the fine follows recent statements by state safety officers that they were considering tighter monitoring of companies making hazardous chemicals as a result of the blast.

Tony Clark, chairman of the workplace safety commission looking into the explosion, also has said he wants Nevada's Division of Environmental Protection to play a bigger role in inspecting explosives manufacturers.

In addition to the state probe, investigators for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board have raised concerns about inadequate training and infrequent inspections at the Sierra Chemical plant 12 miles east of Reno off Interstate 80 near Mustang.

Most of the responsibility for inspecting such plants currently lies with local fire marshals and the Nevada DIR.

Swirczek has said the plant was notified of applicable regulations of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and should have been in compliance with all regulations by May 1997.

Investigators have told the state safety commission that the most probable cause of the explosion was a worker who turned on a motor for a mixing blade unaware that an explosive mix had been left in a melting pot from the night before.

They cited limited technical knowledge on the part of the workers regarding explosive safety. They said all of the workers at the plant were Hispanic and few spoke English, but the plant's safety and operations manuals were available only in English.

Investigators also said workers were paid based on the amount of soda-can-sized explosive booster canisters they filled each shift, and were encouraged to adjust procedures as they saw fit to maximize production.

The explosion left a crater 40 feet wide and six feet deep, broke windows a mile away and shook seismic needles at the University of Nevada, Reno.