11 Killed at Nippon Dynawave Packaging in Washington

LONGVIEW, WA — Just before 7:15 a.m. on May 26, 2026, a 900,000-gallon tank of white liquor imploded at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in Longview, Washington, killing 11 workers and injuring seven more, along with one firefighter. It happened during a shift change. Workers were in a break room adjacent to the tank when the structure gave way.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson called it the state’s deadliest industrial accident in modern history. The last comparable disaster in Washington was in 1930, when 17 workers died in a mine explosion in Carbonado. 

The Incident at Nippon Dynawave Packaging

The facility sits in Longview, about 50 miles north of Portland, Oregon, and about 130 miles south of Seattle. It produces pulp used to make paper products and paperboard for items like cartons and cups.

 An employee shift change had started about 15 minutes before the blast, “so there were many people in this area,” which included an administrative workspace, a break room and operational spaces, according to Cowlitz County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein. 

More than 500,000 gallons of the toxic and corrosive chemical known as white liquor spilled in the blast. White liquor carries a pH of 14 and causes severe chemical burns on contact with skin, according to Stephen Kmiotek, a professor of chemical engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. 

Spillage from the tank sent contamination into the Columbia River. Some patients were transported to the Legacy Oregon Burn Center in Portland, Oregon. 

Recovery efforts were described by Kurt Stitch, deputy chief with Cowlitz 2 Fire and Rescue, as “methodical and incredibly difficult,” requiring crews to move heavy items indoors and conduct drone flyovers to ensure no victims were missed. The ninth and final victim was recovered Saturday, May 30. 

The Victims in Longview, WA Have Been Named

The 11 victims were identified by Cowlitz County Coroner Dana Tucker as Gilberto Bernal, 52; Tyler Covington, 29; Bradley Covington, 27; Robert Wilson, 48; Dale Miller, 54; Jared Ammons, 35; Braydon Finkas, 38; Clinton Doran, 26; John Forsberg, 51; Norman Barlow, 58; and Dillon Miller.

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What Caused the Tank to Fail

Investigators have not yet determined the cause, but chemical safety experts who spoke to Oregon Public Broadcasting offered a working theory. Kmiotek said photos of the tank suggest it collapsed inward rather than exploding outward, and that a dramatic change in pressure — potentially caused by a plugged relief valve — could have triggered the catastrophic implosion. He compared it to placing your mouth over a thin-walled plastic water bottle and creating a seal: the bottle collapses inward under the vacuum.

“There was something dramatically wrong with the tank that caused it to rupture or collapse,” John Bresland, former chair of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, told OPB. 

Investigators will examine the tank’s construction for cracks, corrosion and venting problems, comb through maintenance records for equipment errors, and interview employees, managers and engineers to determine causation, according to Johnnie Banks, a former federal chemical investigator. 

A Pattern of Prior Problems

The disaster did not occur at a facility with a clean safety record.

Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries had two open inspections involving the paper mill at the time of the implosion, though officials said neither is directly related to the tank rupture. One was opened in March after an anonymous complaint involving concerns about a valve on an aqua ammonia clarifier tank.

Washington State Department of Labor and Industries cited Nippon Dynawave four times for safety violations between 2019 and 2025, and two separate L&I investigations into the company were already open at the time of the implosion. 

In 2025, the company was cited for moving equipment before an investigation into an employee’s finger amputation could be completed. In March 2026, mill workers notified the state’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health that a drain hole was creating a sinkhole in the floor. 

The facility also experienced a large wood chip fire in July 2023 that caused unhealthy air quality levels in Portland, and the exact cause was never determined. Another fire occurred on the property in 2025 with no injuries. Nippon had been cited for violating pollution and environmental standards, including a $12,000 fine by the state Department of Ecology in the last two years. 

Marissa Baker, a professor with the University of Washington’s Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, said it was notable that Nippon Dynawave had three inspections in five years and two open inspections at the time of the tank rupture. “If you keep having problems such that you’re on L&I’s radar or you have problems such that your employees are reporting you, there’s probably something that can change to create a better health and safety culture on that site,” she said. 

Investigations Now Underway

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board announced Wednesday, May 28, that it had opened an investigation into the incident. CSB Chairperson Steve Owens said the agency opened the inquiry “to determine how it happened and what can be done to prevent something like this from happening again.”

Washington state’s Department of Labor and Industries has also formally opened a workplace safety investigation to determine what caused the incident and whether any safety violations contributed to it. That investigation could take up to six months. 

Family members of some of the 11 victims are calling for answers and publicly questioning the safety culture at the pulp mill. At least two families say they have retained attorneys. The union representing workers at the facility, the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, has pledged to fight for accountability. 

What Workers and Families Should Know

Industrial disasters of this scale involve multiple overlapping legal processes — criminal investigations, regulatory inquiries and civil claims — that can move on different timelines. Workers injured in the explosion and the families of those killed may have rights under Washington workers’ compensation law, and potentially additional claims depending on what investigators uncover about the condition of the tank and the adequacy of maintenance and safety protocols.

The fact that two separate state safety inspections were already open before the implosion — and that OSHA safety complaints had been filed as recently as May 6, 2026, just three weeks before the disaster — will likely be central to any legal proceedings that follow. Nippon Dynawave’s director of support services, Brian Wood, told reporters the company approached hazards “with the utmost care in everything that we do” and would cooperate fully with investigators.

Families seeking answers should document everything and consult with an attorney experienced in industrial accident and workplace injury law before speaking with company or insurance representatives.