Industrial accident at paper mill in Washington kills eleven people

On May 26, 2026, an industrial accident occurred at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. facility in Longview, Washington. A storage tank with a capacity of 900,000 gallons (3.4 million liters) ruptured during a shift change, releasing a caustic chemical known as white liquor, which is used for pulping wood. The incident resulted in the deaths of eleven employees. Initially, authorities reported two fatalities on Wednesday, while nine workers were listed as missing. Rescue crews conducted a five-day search operation in the aftermath of the spill. Brad Hanig, the Longview fire chief, confirmed that the bodies of the final nine missing individuals were recovered on May 31. The event has concluded with all missing personnel accounted for among the deceased.