At least one person was killed and nine more employees remain missing after a chemical tank ruptured on Tuesday morning at a paper and pulp mill in Longview.
LONGVIEW, Wash. — Lonnie Koistinen says he was taught at a young age that men don’t show emotion, but at age 71, the lifelong Longview resident couldn’t help himself.
Not after what happened at the Nippon Dynawave facility early Tuesday.
“Men do cry sometimes when real tragic things happen,” he said after attending a vigil on Tuesday night to honor the victims. “I had a few tears at this vigil because it was so sad.”
With nine employees still missing, officials said they are in recovery mode.
At least one person was killed after a tank containing caustic white liquor ruptured at a paper and pulp mill in Longview.
Nine people, including one firefighter and eight employees, were taken to hospitals in Longview and Vancouver for treatment, according to the Longview Fire Department. Recovery efforts will resume Wednesday.
Officials said a 900,000 gallon tank storing white liquor — a chemical mixture of sodium hydroxide, sodium sulfide and disodium carbonate used in the papermaking process — ruptured. Fire officials believe 90,000 gallons of the chemical remain inside the tank.
Koistinen fears he may know someone who didn’t make it out.
“It’s the most tragic thing that’s happened in Longview in my lifetime,” he said.
More than 100 people attended the vigil at R.A. Long Park, about two miles from the paper mill.
“I drive past the mill every day on my way home, every day out into town. It’s a huge part of our community. If we didn’t have our millworkers, the town would probably face a steady decline. They’re hard-working people,” said Graylan Davis.
He said his wife knows someone directly impacted by the implosion. After the vigil, he encouraged attendees to embrace one another as the scope of the tragedy becomes clearer in the coming days.
“I worry people within our community don’t feel like they can reach out to somebody that doesn’t fit in their clique, so to speak… blue collar, white collar, left, right,” Davis said. “We’re all here.”
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