Two workers have been confirmed dead after an explosion at Chempark Leverkusen in Germany at around 09.40 on 27 July and a subsequent fire in the tank farm of the Bürrig disposal centre that sent a blanket of smoke across the city and was heard 40 kilometres away.
Four employees of AB Specialty Silicones were killed in a “massive explosion” and a subsequent fire that almost completely destroyed its facility in Waukegan, Illinois, about 80 km north of Chicago, on 3 May. The precise cause of the explosion was still unknown as SCM went to press but it is known that it took place in the building where silicone was produced and was accidental.
