How Common Are Workplace Explosions?

At 10:22 a.m. on November 12, 2024, workers at the Givaudan Sense Colour plant in Louisville, Kentucky, started a process in a batch reactor to produce caramel color for a food product. Operations ran smoothly at first, but at 2:17 p.m., when the pressure and temperature setpoints on the reactor were increased as directed, something went wrong.

The pressure and temperature continued to rise, passing the setpoints by 2:39 p.m.

At 2:54 p.m., the relief valve opened and released some of the pressure, but then it continued to rise. The temperature reached 385°F, surpassing the 300°F setpoint and the reactor’s allowable limit of 335°F. The pressure reached 237 pounds per square inch gauge (psig), more than three times the reactor’s maximum allowable pressure.

At 2:57 p.m., the reactor ruptured.

The explosion killed 2 workers and injured 11 others. Massive pieces of debris and shrapnel flew as far as 400 feet away into the surrounding neighborhood, damaging nearby homes and businesses.

Workplace explosions are rare, but when they happen, the consequences are catastrophic.

Workplace Explosion Statistics & Figures

Workplace explosions claimed 66 lives in 2023, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data on fatal occupational injuries. This amounted to just 1.2% of all fatal work injuries that year.

These explosions can be categorized into several key categories:

• Dust explosions
• Pressure vessel, piping, or tire explosions
• Non-pressurized vapor, gas, or liquid explosions
• Intentionally set explosions

Dust explosions are of particular concern due to their potential to cause catastrophic, widespread damage. 185 workers were killed and 1,055 were injured in combustible dust incidents in the United States between 1980 and 2017, according to the CSB. The agency, along with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), has pushed for stricter regulations across industries that regularly use materials that are explosive in dust form, including food products, grain, tobacco, plastics, paper, wood, pulp, rubber, pesticides, metals, and pharmaceuticals.

Where Do Workplace Explosions Occur?

Explosions occur at all types of workplaces and endanger the lives of anyone in the vicinity, like the machine operator at a New Jersey manufacturing facility who was killed in a production line explosion or the Ohio bank employee who died as a result of a gas line explosion in the basement of the building where he was working.

There are some industries and locations, however, where the risk is higher:

Chemical & Petrochemical Plants
Refineries, fertilizer producers, and other process facilities handle flammable gases, high-pressure reactors, and volatile solvents every day. A single valve failure or instrumentation error can create an explosive vapor cloud—exactly what happened at BP’s Texas City refinery in 2005, when a series of explosions claimed 15 workers' lives and injured 180 others.

Construction Sites
Cutting torches, welding arcs, and temporary fuel tanks may mix with confined spaces and dust-filled air at construction sites. Grain silos, tunnel projects, and even bridge repairs have all seen dust or gas explosions when contractors skip hot work permits or fail to ventilate properly.

Manufacturing & Fabrication Shops
From metal foundries to wood-product mills, static electricity or overheated machinery can ignite accumulated dust or vapors. OSHA cites combustible dust hazards as a repeat offender, yet many plants still lack housekeeping programs and proper explosion venting systems.

Mining Operations
Coal dust explosions and methane pockets remain an ever-present threat underground. Without continuous atmospheric monitoring, rock dusting, and spark-free equipment, a single ignition source can trigger a chain reaction through miles of entries and crosscuts.

Oil, Gas & Energy Services
Drill sites, production platforms, and—critically—oilfield trucking operations carry hydrocarbons under pressure. Tank batteries, separator units, and even transfer hoses can leak or overfill; one static spark or running engine may be all it takes to turn a routine job into a blowout or tank farm fire.

Why Do Workplace Explosions Occur?

Workplace explosions rarely stem from a single cause; they are often the result of layered breakdowns in equipment, procedures, and oversight.

Common root causes include:

• Uncontrolled Releases of Flammable Material: Leaking valves, ruptured hoses, or overfilled vessels can create vapor clouds that explode with any ignition source.
• Defeated or Undersized Relief Systems: Pressure vessels and piping must vent safely when temperatures climb or reactions accelerate. Blocked or inadequate relief devices can turn routine upsets into catastrophic ruptures (such as the Givaudan Sense Colour explosion).
• Deviations from Written Procedures: “Shortcut” start-ups, undocumented maintenance, or skipping purge steps can introduce oxygen, fuel, or high-pressure conditions that the process was never designed to withstand.
• Deficient Instrumentation & Alarms: Faulty gauges, mislabeled setpoints, or disabled interlocks leave operators blind to rising pressure, temperature, or explosive atmospheres.

Case in Point: BP Texas City, 2005

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board’s 341-page final report on the BP Texas City refinery explosion is a textbook illustration of these failure modes converging. Investigators found that operators were encouraged to deviate from start-up procedures, critical alarms and transmitters were out of service, and the raffinate tower’s pressure relief system dumped flammable liquid into a blowdown drum that vented directly to the atmosphere.

With no effective safeguards in place, a vapor cloud formed and ignited.

The CSB traced the disaster to deeper, systemic problems: cost-cutting that left instrumentation unfixed, understaffed control rooms, training gaps, and a corporate culture that prized speed over safety. Those same conditions—budget pressure, missing alarms, procedural drift—still appear in explosion investigations today.

Workplace Explosion Injuries

Burn injuries immediately come to mind because of an explosion, and serious burns can indeed occur, but an explosion causes other dangerous and life-threatening medical consequences as well. Pressure from an explosion can damage a worker's ears, lungs, and gastrointestinal tract. Flying debris can cause lacerations, internal bleeding, and head trauma, among other injuries. Workers are often also knocked over by the force of the blast and thrown against each other, industrial machinery, or other objects. Others may be seriously injured while attempting to evacuate.

When companies ignore industry standards and let unsafe practices become routine, workers—like those at the BP Texas City refinery and the Givaudan Sense Colour facility—pay the ultimate price. Employers must do more to prevent workplace explosions, protecting not only their crews but also neighboring communities and the environment.