A Washington chemical accident killed 11 people after a tank ruptured at a Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in Longview, authorities said Saturday.
Crews recovered the bodies of all nine people missing after the Tuesday accident. Officials had confirmed two deaths earlier, Reuters reported.
The tank held “white liquor,” a chemical solution used in the production of paper pulp. It contains sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide, according to officials.
Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue Deputy Chief Kurt Stitch said crews searched indoor debris during the week. They also used drones to check the site perimeter.
Officials said the tank held about 900,000 gallons, or 3.4 million litres, of white liquor. Tests found contamination in the nearby Columbia River.
Read: Garden Grove Evacuation Ordered Over Chemical Tank
Authorities said they had found no negative health impacts on air quality or Longview’s drinking water. The facility sits in Washington state, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States.
Nippon Paper Industries, Japan’s second-largest paper manufacturer by sales, bought the Longview plant from Weyerhaeuser for $225 million. It created Nippon Dynawave Packaging as a wholly owned unit in 2016 Washington chemical accident.
