VINTON COUNTY, Ohio - The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) has launched a formal investigation into two separate toxic gas releases involving nitric acid at facilities owned by Austin Powder Company in Ohio and Tennessee, the agency announced Tuesday.
The most recent incident occurred on June 11 at the company’s Red Diamond explosives manufacturing plant near McArthur in Vinton County, Ohio. According to Austin Powder, the release was caused by “an unanticipated chemical reaction” in a 5,000-gallon nitric acid storage tank, which “generated” nitrogen oxide gas that escaped into the air. The event resulted in a large, yellow-brown plume of gas enveloping the facility and surrounding areas.
Local officials ordered the evacuation of residents within a three-mile radius of the plant. Hundreds of people in nearby Zaleski were also later evacuated. Media reports indicated that the Federal Aviation Administration imposed temporary flight restrictions within a 30-nautical-mile radius of the site.
A similar event occurred at another Austin Powder-owned facility in Midway, Tennessee, on November 24, 2024. According to the company’s statement at the time, that incident followed a “malfunction” during the start-up of the nitric acid plant at the U.S. Nitrogen facility. Like the Ohio incident, a large, yellow-brown plume of nitrogen oxide gas was released during the event.
“We are concerned that incidents involving nitric acid have occurred at two facilities owned by Austin Powder in less than seven months,” said CSB Chairperson Steve Owens. “While fortunately no one was injured in either incident, we want to ensure that they do not continue to happen.”
The CSB conducted initial fact-finding at the Red Diamond facility last week, according to the agency. The board is an independent federal body tasked with investigating industrial chemical incidents that have resulted—or could result—in catastrophic releases of hazardous substances.
Although the CSB does not issue citations or fines, it provides safety recommendations to companies, labor organizations, regulatory agencies, and industry groups.
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