Nippon chemical spill leaks into Columbia River
Tests conducted by the state Department of Ecology have confirmed the presence of caustic papermaking chemicals seeping into the Columbia River in the aftermath of Tuesday's fatal blast at Nippon Dynawave.
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Some of those chemicals appear to have killed fish in the river, Washington state Gov. Bob Ferguson said in a multi-agency press conference Wednesday.
He said about a dozen carp died in the nearby waterway when discussing the National Guard's deployment to help the state environmental agency with air and water quality monitoring in Longview.
A message to the Department of Ecology spills prevention spokesperson Anna Izenman was not immediately returned Wednesday afternoon.
Much of the Wednesday press event was devoted to updates on the recovery efforts underway at the mill off Industrial Way. Ferguson said his office is bracing for the Longview investigation to be the "deadliest industrial tragedy in modern Washington state history."
Signs to warn public near dikes, ditches
Cowlitz 2 Chief Scott Goldstein said at the press conference that the state Department of Ecology pH testing confirmed that the caustic papermaking substance, white liquor, entered the Columbia River soon after the fatal tank rupture on Tuesday.
"Additional evaluations are underway to better understand the scope and extent of that environmental impact," Goldstein said.
Two people have been confirmed deceased at the site, another nine people are missing and feared dead, and seven people have been injured.
Goldstein said Wednesday afternoon there had still been "no identified negative health impacts" on the surrounding area's air quality or drinking water system.
Sign
A sign on Wednesday, May 27, warns people from going near a ditch near the Nippon pulp and paper mill off Industrial Way. A chemical spill occurred at the mill the day before.
The spilled chemicals are a mixture of sodium hydroxide, sodium sulfide and sodium carbonate.
The Department of Ecology and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency worked through the evening with local utilities and diking districts on environmental monitoring and mitigation efforts, Goldstein said.
Goldstein asked the public to keep avoiding affected dikes and ditches in the area between Washington Way and Prudential Boulevard, the latter of which is near the Mint Farm industrial park.
Signs are posted near those areas to caution the public.
Further, motorists are asked to avoid the area of Industrial Way near the complex to allow emergency crews to work the site.
State agencies onsite
Ferguson outlined state resources sent to Longview during the emergency response, including details on how 46 members of the National Guard are being deployed.
The National Guard servicemen and women include 10 civil support team members who are assisting the state Department of Ecology with air-quality testing.
"It bears repeating, those results show no evidence of airborne contamination," Ferguson said before pledging that the state agency will keep monitoring the area "over the coming days."
He said the State Department of Ecology is working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Nippon Dynawave on a plan to remove the white liquor from the river.
Another 20 members of the National Guard's Homeland Response Force are assisting with decontamination efforts in the area, and eight are assisting other agencies in recovering bodies.
"When you have a tragedy of that scale, the impacts on individuals, on families, on communities are profound," Ferguson said.
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