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Recycler Caught in Deadly Fire
To be sure, the process of dismantling old computers, copying machines, telecommunications devices, and televisions, and handling the various plastics, metals, and chemicals they contain, is hazardous at best, and can be downright dangerous-and occasionally deadly.
One such incident occurred at MBA Polymers, of Richmond, Calif. Founded in 1994, the company operates what is widely considered to be one of the most advanced plastics recycling plants in the world. But early on the morning of October 26, 2000, an explosion and fire at the 90,000-square-foot plastics recycling plant claimed the life of a night-shift worker.
The explosion sent black plumes of toxic smoke into the sky over Richmond, forcing a dozen schools to close, businesses to evacuate, and the announcement of shelter-in-place warnings for residents and workers. More than 200 people, including area factory workers and firefighters, crowded into area hospitals, complaining of irritated throats and eyes, headaches, and other ailments.
In the morning, with winds shifting, the acrid smoke was so powerful over the town of Richmond that 2,400 employees at the Chevron Refinery were told to stay inside, while those working outside used respirators. At the nearby Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, tollworkers were instructed to leave their booths and take shelter, leaving drivers with a free ride across the bridge.
MBA Polymers recycles plastic items such as computer cases, telephones, and toner cartridges. Following the fatal industrial accident, the company cut its staff by half and reduced the amount of plastic it recycled.
Investigators for the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health attributed the explosion and fire to an accumulation of toner-cartridge dust. An electrostatic charge in a grinder may have ignited the explosive toner dust used in copy machines, resulting in the fire that killed a 26-year-old forklift operator. MBA Polymers, which didn't respond to requests for an interview, was fined by Cal/OSHA more than $221,000.
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