All of us who leave home for work do so with faith that we will come home safely. While we’re aware that some occupations carry more inherent risk, it’s easy to overlook how other jobs place our friends and neighbors in settings where they could be harmed in the event of a breakdown or wrong decision.
Consider the manufacturing, industrial and construction sectors in our state. They provide essential, valuable family-wage jobs in many Washington communities – plus some potential hazards. All sorts of machinery and tools. Heavy equipment. Electricity. Heights. And, in the case of the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview, chemicals – like the potent mix called “white liquor” used to turn wood chips into the pulp that becomes paper.
On the morning of May 26, tens of thousands of gallons of this dangerous liquid spilled onto part of the facility grounds when a storage tank imploded. Eleven workers were killed. Almost as many were injured.
I know the Longview area well. It is by far the largest city in Cowlitz County, and a big part of the county has been in my southwest Washington legislative district since my 2012 election to the state Senate. At least one of the fallen workers is from the district.
The catastrophe at the plant can be summed up in one word: heartbreaking. Families have lost loved ones. More families will now suffer unexpected financial hardship.
In the midst of this heartbreak, we must praise the responders – beginning with those who were already on the scene.
Despite the dangerous chemicals, infrastructure concerns, and unpredictable hazards associated with industrial accidents, workers jumped into action to prevent or minimize harm to other workers. There’s no telling how many more casualties were prevented by their heroic and selfless actions.
Meanwhile, according to a news report, a 911 operator was asking questions of the person who phoned from the plant’s dispatch office when a simple but powerful plea came from a second voice in the background: “We need everyone.”
As they typically do in a crisis, everyone responded – firefighters, law enforcement officers, and emergency medical personnel. Like agents of mercy and hope, they arrived quickly to bring additional resources to a situation that would otherwise be overwhelming.
Local hospitals did their part, finding even more room for the injured when a life-flight helicopter was kept away by the weather. Chaplains brought compassion and humanity. News reporters based in and around Longview displayed professionalism and dedication as they supplied people with important information.
Now layer on top of that the fact that Longview and the neighboring city of Kelso make for a tight-knit community. If you don’t work at the mill, says the senator whose district includes Longview and the Nippon Dynawave plant, the chances are you know someone who does.
This means the women and men who answered the call on the morning of May 26 could easily have been treating people who were known to them, in some fashion – a fellow youth baseball parent, a neighbor’s relative, or someone similar.
Also, once the physical danger of responding is behind them, those who bravely tended to their fellow workers and the first responders are left with visions that they can’t unsee. Their willingness to step up deserves our deepest respect and gratitude.
The senator who represents Longview wants a thorough, transparent investigation of the Nippon Dynawave tragedy. I agree. We need to know what happened, to have any chance of preventing a repeat.
In the meantime, let’s not lose sight of how nearly everything we use every day passes first through the hands of someone in our industrial and manufacturing sectors. Communities throughout our state were built by people who accepted the risks that went with this work, in exchange for stable incomes. These jobs are just as vital today to Washington’s economy and the countless families they sustain.
The governor said Longview will need “every ounce” of the resiliency it had already shown following the chemical-tank implosion. I agree – and my faith in Longview is strong.
The people of this area have endured since 1852, when the Monticello Convention, commemorated at a park near the center of Longview, led to Washington becoming a territory. Eight days before the Nippon Dynawave tragedy, we observed another anniversary of the Mount St. Helens eruption, which presented its own challenges to the community close to 50 years ago.
The Nippon plant dates to 1953. It operated 63 years before the current owner took over. The demand for its products isn’t going away. But that doesn’t help the families who are affected by the plant’s sudden shutdown – which brings me to a request.
A fund to benefit the families of those lost in the Nippon tragedy has been created by the Cowlitz Wahkiakum Labor Council and Longview Kelso Building Trades Council. It’s at the Lower Columbia Longshoreman’s Credit Union, 629 14th Avenue, Longview; the phone number is 360-423-2770. If you’re in a position to give, please do. It’s one of the many ways we can do better.
Senator John Braun was first elected to the Washington State Senate in 2012 to represent Southwest Washington’s 20th Legislative District, which includes most of Cowlitz and Lewis counties along with parts of Clark and Thurston.
John is leader of the Senate Republican Caucus and a member of the Senate Ways & Means Committee, the Labor & Commerce Committee, and the Housing Committee.
Prior to his business career, John served on active duty in the U.S. Navy. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Washington and master’s degrees in business administration and manufacturing engineering from the University of Michigan.
He and his family reside on a small farm in rural Lewis County, outside Centralia.
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Author: Lynnwood Times Contributor
