CBS News confirmed a second fatality Wednesday after a patient transferred to the Legacy Oregon Burn Center in Portland died from injuries. Two other patients from the incident remain hospitalized. Nine workers are still unrecovered at the Longview site as recovery operations contend with structural instability at the ruptured tank.

Washington state regulators took formal enforcement action against Nippon Dynawave 18 times over the past decade, resulting in fines totaling $43,700. Federal records show the facility had been out of compliance with the Clean Water Act every quarter for the past three years. Tuesday’s implosion sent contamination into the nearby Columbia River.

Recovery operations resumed Wednesday as investigators began building a picture of Nippon Dynawave’s regulatory history. State investigators are on site but will not begin a formal investigation until recovery operations are complete — a process that could take up to six months. The facility had also received a penalty in March 2026 for air quality violations related to excess venting of process gases.

CNN reported that spillage from the ruptured tank sent contamination into the Columbia River. The tank, originally believed to hold 80,000 gallons, was later confirmed to contain approximately 900,000 gallons of white liquor — a chemical capable of causing second- and third-degree burns on contact. An estimated 25,000 gallons remain inside the still-unstable structure.

Washington State Department of Labor & Industries cited Nippon Dynawave four times for safety violations between 2019 and 2025, and two separate L&I investigations into the company were already open at the time of Tuesday’s implosion — including one opened two months earlier following an anonymous complaint about a valve on a tank holding aqua ammonia, another highly corrosive chemical.

KATU confirmed that fatalities occurred following a chemical implosion at the Nippon Dynawave facility in Longview, with additional workers unaccounted for as of Tuesday afternoon.

KOMO News reported that a vat of white liquor imploded at the Nippon Dynawave kraft pulp and packaging plant, sending multiple workers to area hospitals with chemical burns and other injuries.

KOIN covered the major chemical explosion at the Longview facility, reporting on injuries and the ongoing emergency response at the Nippon Dynawave plant.

The Seattle Times reported that a major chemical explosion at a Longview paper mill injured multiple people, prompting a large emergency response from fire and hazmat crews.

KGW reported on the chemical plant explosion in Longview, covering the emergency response and injuries sustained by workers at the Nippon Dynawave facility.