Dust Explosions | Industrial Accidents

Industrial Accident Lawsuits

Dust explosions are one of the most dangerous and least understood hazards in American agriculture and processing facilities. When combustible dust ignites, the results can lead to traumatic injuries and deaths.

If you or someone you love was injured in a dust explosion at a facility in Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, or Michigan, The Lyon Firm is here to help. We represent seriously injured workers and their families in complex industrial accident cases, and we know how to build claims that hold negligent employers and equipment manufacturers fully accountable.

What Is a Dust Explosion?

A dust explosion occurs when fine particles of combustible material become suspended in the air and encounter an ignition source. The initial blast, known as a primary explosion, can dislodge settled dust from surfaces and equipment, creating a second, often far more powerful blast called a secondary explosion.

Secondary explosions are frequently responsible for the most severe injuries and structural destruction in these incidents.

Many common industrial materials can fuel a dust explosion. These include grain and agricultural byproducts, wood dust, coal dust, metal powders such as aluminum and magnesium, chemical powders, sugar and starch, plastics, and pharmaceutical compounds.

The presence of these materials alone is not enough to cause an explosion, but when they accumulate without proper housekeeping and ventilation controls, the risk becomes extreme.

The industries most frequently affected by combustible dust incidents in states like Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan include grain elevators and feed mills, sawmills and wood processing plants, coal handling facilities, metal fabrication shops, food processing plants, chemical manufacturing facilities, and paper and pulp mills.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), dust explosion accidents occur rather frequently in some industrial settings. Workplace explosions can cause wrongful deaths, burn injury, brain injuries and other serious injury.

OSHA says there are a number of materials that can produce an explosive environment, combining combustible dust, compact areas, oxygen and an ignition source.

Combustible dust explosion accidents typically occur in two waves: the primary explosion, held in an enclosed space where dust burns and releases gasses. A second wave, or secondary explosion, may occur when additional dust becomes suspended in the air and ignites.

Many workers are unaware of the potential explosion threat, and employers often do no train employees on the serious hazards in their facility. Industries commonly at risk of explosion accidents include:

• Fertilizer plants
• Processing factories
• Manufacturing facilities
• Tobacco plants
• Pharmaceutical companies
• Furniture plants
• Pesticide facilities
• Coal factories
• Dye factory
• Metal processing location
• Pulp and paper processing plant
• Recycling operation
• Woodwork industry
• Fossil fuel power generator plant
• Farms
• Grain silos
• Warehouses
• Plastic plant

Joe Lyon is a Workplace injury lawyer and Industrial accident attorney reviewing burn accident and dust explosion lawsuits for injured plaintiffs.

Causes of Dust Explosion Accidents

Combustible materials that have led to industrial workplace explosions in the past have included:

• Metals
• Dyes
• Textiles
• Rubber
• Pesticides and fertilizers
• Wood
• Plastics
• Tobacco
• Coal

Dust Explosion Prevention

A workplace explosion can cause employee deaths, injuries, and property damages. OSHA recommends a thorough workplace hazard assessment of all materials, operations and work areas. Safety agencies suggest taking the following precautions:

• Locate relief valves away from dust deposits
• Use appropriate electrical equipment and wiring
• Control static electricity
• Control ignition sources like smoking, open flames, and sparks
• Control mechanical sparks and friction
• Separate heated surfaces from dusts
• Open areas where dust may collect
• Create a program to inspect for and test for the presence of dust
• Use dust collection systems and filters
• Use explosion proof vacuum cleaners
• Implement a preventative equipment maintenance program

Why Dust Explosions Happen

Common failures that lead to dust explosion injuries include inadequate dust collection and ventilation systems, failure to conduct regular housekeeping to prevent dust accumulation, lack of explosion venting or suppression equipment, absence of employee training on combustible dust hazards, ignored warning signs or prior incidents, failure to identify materials as combustible, and defective industrial equipment that generates sparks or excessive heat.

When an employer knowingly operates a facility with uncontrolled combustible dust hazards, they are putting workers at serious risk. When equipment manufacturers design or sell machinery that creates dangerous ignition conditions in dusty environments, they share in that responsibility.

The Lyon Firm investigates every angle to determine who bears legal liability for what happened.

Injuries Caused by Dust Explosions

The force and heat generated by a dust explosion can cause injuries that are extraordinarily severe. Workers caught in these events often suffer injuries that require years of treatment and may permanently alter the quality of their lives.

Common injuries in dust explosion cases include third and fourth degree burn injuries across large portions of the body, blast trauma and traumatic brain injuries, collapsed lungs and chest trauma from the pressure wave, smoke inhalation and respiratory damage, loss of limbs or severe crush injuries from structural collapses triggered by the explosion, damage to hearing and eyesight, and severe scarring and disfigurement requiring multiple reconstructive surgeries.

Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Claims

Workers injured in dust explosions may initially turn to workers’ compensation for help. While workers’ compensation provides important benefits, it is not the only source of recovery available, and in many cases it is not sufficient to address the full extent of a worker’s losses.

Workers’ compensation in Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan will generally cover medical expenses and a portion of lost wages. However, it does not compensate workers for pain and suffering, disfigurement, emotional distress, or the full value of future lost earning capacity. For workers with catastrophic injuries, this gap in coverage can be financially devastating.

A third-party personal injury claim fills that gap when a party other than the direct employer bears responsibility for the explosion. This might include the manufacturer of a dust collection system that failed, a contractor who performed faulty electrical work in the facility, an equipment supplier whose machinery generated sparks in a combustible environment, or a property owner who failed to maintain safe conditions.

The Lyon Firm evaluates every dust explosion case for both workers’ compensation options and third-party liability. We pursue every avenue of recovery so that our clients receive the most complete compensation the law allows.