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For most people the phrase "dust explosion" summons an image as slight as emptying a vacuum clearer, not an industrial catastrophe that destroys life and property. Later she said his family gave her the choice of either doing so or never seeing him again, since they claimed he was facing imminent deportation, for reasons that are not known. In early 2013, a federal prosecutor said no criminal charges would be filed in the blast, citing insufficient evidence. A year before the blast, the Chemical Safety Board had started pressing OSHA for a national standard on combustible dust, and in 2009, OSHA proposed a new rule. [9] Bellingham water treatment personnel were forced to manually add water treatment chemicals to keep the water supply safe until the plant could be rebuilt. Nov. 19, 2008: Ground is broken for a new packaging warehouse. Nov. 24, 2008: The first load of liquid sugar is sent out for delivery. John Oxendine, the state's . William Wallace Sprague, Jr. becomes sixth president. Thursday marks 11 years since Imperial Sugar Refinery explosion - WTOC "Obviously she's just trying to maybe get me kind of riled up," he said. Biryukova believed that her in-laws blamed her for this, straining their relationship with her and causing more problems in the marriage. And people who, ministers and priests all from this area, they had to try to comfort and be with the families of those who had lost people.". That, in turn, triggered a cascade of secondary dust explosions. The event raised $5,000. With additional propane tanks at risk of explosion, firefighters douse flames at the foundry Saturday evening. TIMELINE: Imperial Sugar explosion from 2008 until today Biryukova later claimed that she did not tell her own family the real reason the two had wed until 2010. The offer expires at midnight on October 16. WJCL looks back at what happened and what we have learned from the tragic event. One house was completely destroyed. The month the two were married, Biryukova reported Morgan to the Redmond police for allegedly assaulting her and was granted a no-contact order; she nevertheless visited him regularly in jail in Issaquah, where he was when she gave birth, under assumed names. Shortly after that tragedy last spring, OSHA dropped a proposed standard on combustible dust. Although there have been allegations that she neglected Sky when he was in her custody, and state child-welfare agencies have tried to remove a child she had with a later husband with a history of abuse,[4] police have made a "strategic decision" not to charge her with child endangerment for leaving her son in the car on the day he disappeared, in order to keep their options open if they learn more about Sky's whereabouts. Many nearby buildings had broken windows. Motorists who had passed the parked Acura did not report seeing anything unusual, not even a child in it. [2], Authorities all noted that the destruction and death toll were much lower than would be expected from such a large explosion. Apr. Since the local plant is taking up the slack from the Ohio plant, the strikers threaten to expand the strike to the Savannah plant. The final tally was 35 cents per share compared with 14 cents per share in the same quarter of 1995. April 1988: Ranked as number 347 on the Fortune 500. Aug. 7: The Savannah Tech training is completed. 1968: Western Grain Company of Birmingham Alabama, also known as Jim Dandy Co., is acquired. Trooper Brandy Kessler of the State Patrol said the events started when a delivery truck, loaded with 8,000 gallons of propane, exploded at the foundry, starting a fire in a nearby propane tank. June 30, 2021 Solomon moved with the children to his parents' home in Kirkland. November: Threatens to leave if the city of Savannah proceeds with a plan to change the way it assesses business taxes. Four bodies were recovered in the ruins of a sugar refinery near Savannah, Ga., that was rocked by an explosion Thursday evening and burned all night. [6], After the couple separated, Biryukova texted her husband claiming to have suicidal ideations, which she later claimed she had done just to get his attention. His mother, Julia Biryukova, claimed that she put Sky, who was reportedly sick, and his older sister in her car to go to a nearby hospital. Meanwhile, Imperial outlines its 'commitment to safety' in response to the knowledge of dust hazards. February: First quarter reports that the company is overcoming the loss sustained in the last quarter of 1995. May 1: Agribusiness Louis Dreyfus Commodities announces they will acquire Imperial Sugar. A massive accumulation of combustible sugar dust fueled the blast that demolished much of the Imperial Sugar refinery in Chatham County. However, on November 3, shortly after the agreement had been signed, Biryukova called her lawyer and, saying she had felt pressured into the session, decided to void it. The initial blast rocked the building, jolting more dust into the air. Solomon Metalwala is originally from Pakistan. She continued to refuse to speak with Bellevue police about her son's disappearance. February 21: The company will sell its Diamond Crystal Brands division to Hormel Foods Corp. for $65 million as part of a plan to reduce debt that drove the sugar refiner into bankruptcy. The sugar brand is 'Evercane'. [5][6] The black smoke plume extended to an altitude of 30,000 feet (9,100m) and the smoke from the explosion was visible from Vancouver to Anacortes. Fourteen lives were taken and several others were injured after the Imperial Sugar Refinery exploded. She acknowledged that she was not allowed to be alone with her new son without an observer present. Atlanta bail bondsman first defendant in 2020 election case to turn himself in, the Chemical Safety Board found in its investigation. While she was there, their lender foreclosed on the condominium. A few months after that, the Chemical Safety Board took the rare step of rebuking OSHA for not implementing national safety standards on combustible dust, citing the Imperial Sugar explosion and more than 200 other fires and explosions around the country. The company plans to appeal. [8], Unlike her client, Berry is doubtful about the outcome of the case. A propane tank on site also caught fire but did not explode, according to Dan Crotty, assistant fire chief at the Tacoma Fire Department. The primary explosion occurred inside a sugar conveyor located beneath two sugar-storage silos that were inadequately designed and had allowed a build-up of sugar dust. [2] Shortly before, Biryukova had decided to withdraw from a mediated custody agreement that was the last stage of an acrimonious divorce from Sky's father, Solomon Metalwala. The report blamed inadequate equipment design, poor maintenance and ineffective housekeeping for the explosion and fire in February 2008, and said that Imperial Sugar and the sugar industry as a . November: One year later, Savannah Foods is reporting that it is in the black for the last quarter. Also, unrelated to the local refinery, Imperial considers a joint venture with Louisiana Sugar Refinery LLC to build and operate a plant on its Gramercy site. This was due to the explosion being centered in a large, forested park; the fires mostly staying in Whatcom Creek; and the ignition occurring before more gasoline had leaked, which would have resulted in a much larger explosion. Aug. 22: The 14th victim is claimed. Spokesman Steve Behm said while the reports were received two days before the disaster, they were not "reviewed" until afterwards. Southbound traffic on Interstate 5 comes to a halt Saturday afternoon as a fire burns at the Atlas Castings & Technology foundry near the intersection with Highway 16 in Tacoma. He says he was told to 'temper' his concerns. May 1987: Sells Atlantic Towing, founded in 1920, to employees of ATCO. Jimmy, Rosalynn Carter still holding hands, grandson tells magazine. Both survived the blast, but sustained severe burns, dying the next day at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. [15], The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) removed Maile from Biryukova's home in the wake of her brother's disappearance and placed her into foster care. Graham counters with the emails warning of a possible disaster on his computer were removed. On Friday night, as they've done every year sense, those affected by the tragedy came together at Our Lady of Lourdes Church to remember those who were lost and those who survived the explosion. If the dust was not allowed to build up, this terrible accident would not have happened and we would not have had the terrible injuries that we saw, Bresland said. PORT WENTWORTH, Ga. (AP) Broken equipment inside a steel conveyor belt sparked the first explosion at the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth on a mild winter night 10 years ago. W. W. Sprague, III becomes seventh president. Imperial Sugar - Wikipedia As we continue our after-action reviews of historical events that have impacted the industrial fire service, the 2008 explosion at Imperial Sugar's Georgia refinery is one that deserves special attention. Mrs. C. W. Hackett, the first employee of the refinery, christened the barge. October: Reports show William W. Sprague III's five-year contract allows him a severance package of at least $2.26 million. As of 2006, the pipeline is 65% owned by Enbridge and 35% owned by BP. 17: Imperial shuts down the powdered sugar area of the Gramercy, La. After a lie detector test he took the night after the disappearance proved inconclusive, Solomon took another one the next day,[6] although neither he, his attorney, nor the police shared the results with the public. When questioned further about these discrepancies, Biryukova invoked her Fifth Amendment rights and refused to take a lie detector test. A group of ministers and businessmen is determined that the memories of the deadly inferno at Imperial Sugar's Port Wentworth plant do not fade away. William S. Pardonner is named the second president. The earning for the quarter were $8.82 million. Each year, the community pauses to remember the 14 lives lost and the more than 40 people injured in the incident on Feb. 7, 2008. "That's why we try to have it here, because the church played an important role during that time," said Faith Baptist Church Pastor Samuel Williams. Savannah, Georgia, September 24, 2009 - In a final draft report released today, CSB investigators said the February 7, 2008, explosion at the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, resulted from ongoing releases of sugar from inadequately designed and maintained dust collection equipment, conveyors, and sugar handling equipment. Both parents were arrested after police had them paged to their car and charged with reckless endangerment. Local groups to remember Imperial Sugar victims with series of events On June 10, 1999, the Olympic pipeline operated by Olympic Pipe Line Company, carrying gasoline at the time, exploded in Whatcom Falls Park in Bellingham, Washington. [3], Biryukova has not been fully cooperative with the police, although she claims to have no more idea than her ex-husband of what happened to Sky. January: The company posted net income of $9.14 million for the previous three months. She said that when she returned after being gone about an hour and a half, Sky was gone. Imperial Sugar agreed in July 2010 to pay more than $4 million for safety violations at its Port Wentworth refinery as part of a company-wide $6 million settlement with regulators. Family, friends remember victims of Imperial Sugar explosion 7 years Biryukova offered to forego alimony and child support if he let her move to Arizona with the children, but he refused. [16] The divorce was granted in January 2012. The initial blast rocked the. "We were still in the process of working with them to complete a pre-plan (emergency contingency plant)," Long said. "Big Mike" Williams, 51, of Savannah. Metalwala at the time of his disappearance, left, and, Toggle Subsequent developments subsection, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, "Sky Metalwala's disappearance still an active investigation after 3 years", "Did a Mom Take Her Missing Child Story from, "Sky's Father Says Disappearance Linked to Custody Dispute", "Mother of missing boy has another child, feared 'at risk', "Investigators still haven't ruled out missing toddler's parents, who struggled with heated past", "Police: Missing boy not seen for 2 weeks", "Missing toddler's parents alleged abuse, neglect against each other", "The Strange and Unending Case of Sky Metalwala", "Missing 2-year-old's dad grieves as hope dims", "Police begin to question the story of missing boy's mother", "Cops: Only mom, sis, had seen missing boy recently", "Police stymied by contradictions in Sky Metalwala's disappearance", "Mom of missing toddler Sky Metalwala sought 'sugar daddy' on dating website: report", "Missing Toddler's Mom Speaks to ABC News on Email", "Kirkland resident Solomon Metalwala granted custody of daughter, son still missing", "Metalwala keeps believing that his missing son, Sky, will be found", "Police say they have new information in Metalwala case", "Mother of Sky Metalwala still won't talk to Bellevue police 7 years after son's disappearance", "Still no answers 10 years after disappearance of 2-year-old Sky Metalwala from Bellevue", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Disappearance_of_Sky_Metalwala&oldid=1111958747, Missing person cases in Washington (state), November 2011 events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, This page was last edited on 23 September 2022, at 22:25. Jan. 26: Victim Lawrence Manker, Jr. is introduced on the floor of the Georgia Senate. The sugar refinery is located on a 160 acre site founded in 1917 at Port Wentworth, Georgia. On Feb. 7 of that year, a sugar dust explosion inPort Wentworth claimed 14 lives and injured 38 others. And the feds start the process to set dust rule in place. Olympic pipeline explosion - Wikipedia The company had been a main sponsor for eight years. Subsequently, Olympic Pipeline failed to find or repair the damage. "She concocted that hospital story and when she realized no-one believed it, she hired an attorney," Leslie Clay Berry, Solomon's attorney, told the Seattle Weekly in 2013. [11], The theory that Sky's disappearance might have been arranged by Biryukova drew more credence when police learned of strong coincidences between her story and a recently aired episode of the popular NBC crime drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The company also reports it lowest quarterly loss since the fire and explosion. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. [18], Around the time of the fourth anniversary of Sky's disappearance in 2015, it was reported that Biryukova had not only remarried the previous year but had borne her third child by her new husband, Alan Morgan, in July. "She's a clean freak, and she probably bleached everything out," she said to the newspaper, pointing to Biryukova's OCD. March: New storage silos begin to rise over the plant. 25: OSHA assesses Imperial Sugar's Gramercy, La. Others present are Mr. Hackett, W. W. Sprague, Bernard F. Diamond (president of the company that built the barge), and Thomas Oxnard. 23: John Bresland, chairman of the Chemical Safety Board, tours the plant. Biryukova later stated that around the 2600 block of 112th Avenue N.E. On February 7, 2008, a huge explosion and fire occurred at the Imperial Sugar refinery northwest of Savannah, Georgia, causing 14 deaths and injuring 38 others, including 14 with serious and life-threatening burns. On her Facebook page, she had posted many pictures of Maile but almost none of Sky. At Gray, our journalists report, write, edit and produce the news content that informs the communities we serve. The strike ends later in the month. The settlement with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration comes nearly two years after regulators first Lest We Forget" will mark. December 3: Imperial Sugar Co. announces it has signed a non-binding letter of intent with Hormel for the sale of Diamond Crystal Brand. Bookmark +. Feb. 16: The first funerals for the victims are held. Broken equipment inside a steel conveyor belt sparked the first explosion at the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth on a mild winter night 10 years ago. There were eight related injuries. Aftermath of the explosion and fire at the Imperial Sugar Company's plant fire in Port Wentworth, Ga. which killed 14 and injured scores. April: OSHA continues it press against the company for safety violations. The explosion at the plant was entirely preventable and the deaths that occurred in February 2008 should never have happened, CSB Chairman John Bresland said. Jan. 6: Imperial Sugar victim Shameir Frasier speaks at a rally held to encourage the Georgia Assembly to create a permanent funding arrangement for the state's trauma centers. It's held at the same church that saw many family members immediately following the disaster, who sought information about their loved ones. Benjamin Oxnard Sprague is selected as the third president. What tools or technology is available today that might provide a rapid assessment of the situation that didn't exist in 2008? A Dusting of Sugar: Examination of Safety Hazards at Imperial Sugar On 7 February 2008, fourteen people were killed and thirty eight injured during a dust explosion at an Imperial Sugar owned refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, United States. "And people who, ministers and priests all from this area, they had to try to comfort and be with the families of those who had lost people.". The refinery was located out of the city limits of Port Wentworth. [5], Biryukova later told a clinical psychologist that by this point she had learned that her boyfriend could be "very controlling" and she had become emotionally dependent on him in turn. On February 7, 2008, at about 7:15 p.m., a series of sugar dust explosions at the Imperial Sugar manufacturing facility in Port Wentworth, Georgia, resulted in 14 worker fatalities. March: Endow the Dixie Crystals Professorship at Georgia Southern College (now University). [8] She did, however, give investigators permission to search her car, her computer and her home. She called police and reported him missing. "I'm a realist," the Port Wentworth fire chief says, assessing the actions he took on a chilly Thursday night one year ago this week, when a deadly explosion ripped through the Imperial Sugar. Michael B. The fire shot up several stories and could be seen across the river into South Carolina. Who are the 30 unindicted co-conspirators in Trump Fulton County case? 1970: Company name is changed to Savannah Foods & Industries, Inc. July 1, 1972: Lawton Calhoun retires. Witnesses miles away felt the explosions and said they saw flames shoot up as much as 1,000 feet in the air. Only six months before the blast, Chief Greg Long's department was assigned responsibility for fire protection at Imperial. The Imperial sugar plant explosion claimed 14 lives, and injured dozens more. Eight bodies are eventually recovered from the site as many others are injured. They also found Morgan, a convicted felon, problematic. After reviewing the emails, ABC News shared them with the Bellevue police, who could not comment on them but believed they might be of some value to their case. [8], According to Biryukova, on the morning of November 6, 2011, Sky woke up sick in their Redmond apartment. OSHA initiated the inspections following an explosion and fire on Feb. 7, 2008, at the Port Wentworth refinery that claimed the . Recommendations Mar. [8] However, Maile told the police that Sky had indeed been in the car that morning. Within two years they were experiencing financial problems as well, when a competing deli opened next to their restaurant and began cutting into their earnings. [1] Later, Solomon's lawyer told the Seattle Weekly another reason for the inaction: if police did arrest Biryukova, she and her attorney would be able to review all the evidence the police had accumulated up to that point, which neither they nor Solomon wanted her to be able to do. 17: The announcement is made that the decision is officially made to rebuild the destroyed parts of the plant. Solomon Metalwala is originally from Pakistan. Apr. Apr. R. Eugene Cartledge is elected chairman, a position vacant since W. W. Sprague, Jr.'s retirement in 1994. A Tacoma Police officer who asked to remain . October 16: Shareholders agree to sell 88.1 percent of the company stock to Imperial Holly. The company admitted no wrongdoing. June: Imperial Sugar posts a loss of $6.4 million in their third quarter. The explosion was fueled by massive accumulations of combustible sugar dust throughout the packaging building. They take a $15.5 million loss with a 32% drop in revenue. All rights reserved. Feb 17: Gerald Schantz hosts a BBQ to raise money for the victims' families. [5], In 2005, Solomon converted to Christianity; he and his wife began attending a church in Kirkland. 1. Apr. Davis, the deputy fire chief, said the blast blew out windows in nearby industrial buildings, and the axle from the propane truck that exploded was found on Highway 16, at least four blocks away. They appoint two "independent and disinterested" individuals. Nine of 450 employees are laid off. 11: Two more burn victims are released. Also, lawyers for the victims file to set aside a confidentiality order and allow previous depositions to be made public. Large quantities of dust dispersed and suspended in air can cause a rapid combustion known as deflagration. Bookmarked content can then be accessed anytime on all of your logged in devices! A fine of $3.7 million is assessed against the plant in Gramercy, La. Oct. 17, 2008: The refinery accepts delivery of an 88,000-pound granulator that dries and cools sugar. The mixture is used to make oral rehydration therapy for the victims of the disaster. "I am convinced you hold the key to finding Sky," he said in a local newspaper. [8] Berry, Solomon's attorney, said she believes more definitely that Sky was never in the car that morning, nor would police have been expected to find any evidence in the apartment. Searchers combed a 20-block radius of the car but found nothing. December: Lawrence Manker's lawsuit is settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. The sale is completed in January. Combustible dust caused a deadly explosion at Imperial Sugar's Georgia refinery. Emergency responders stopped most of the fires by 6:30 PM; the smoke dissipated by 7:00. Tugs equipped with pumps drafted water from the Savannah River to supply the aerials. The court approved an interim financing plan that will provide the money needed to pay bills and employees. "It sounded like my house was exploding," she said. 1. While she believes Biryukova is responsible for Sky's death, she allows that it could have been merely the result of child neglect rather than a deliberate act of malice.[8]. This past November, the agency was informed that the White House would propose eliminating it. Legacy Park Address: 201 Oxnard Dr., Port Wentworth, GA Directions: I-95 exit 109 and turn south on Augusta Road. Despite efforts to improve safety and reduce the potential for recurrence, the 2008 sugar refinery explosion represents a tragic failure to learn from the past. Mar. 9: A bill targeting sugar dust moves forward in the U.S. House. On the 10th anniversary, the Bellevue police released an updated flyer with Sky now shown age-progressed to 12. This accident was caused by poor equipment design, poor maintenance and poor housekeeping. The Georgia Legislature observes a moment of silence as the first anniversary approaches. Solomon, then 21, invited her to a party, and the two began dating. Emergency crews came from all around, including ambulance crews from a dozen counties. [5], Sky was born in 2009; a psychiatrist Biryukova saw prescribed her antidepressants while she was pregnant although she said she did not need them. [2], Olympic Pipe Line Company ran a network of fuel pipes beginning at refineries in Whatcom County and Anacortes and running south to Seattle and Portland.