Wacker’s Bradley County plant, the site of a fatal incident last year in which one person died and four others were injured, has been cited for a “serious violation” and fined, according to state documents.
The polysilicon maker received a proposed fine of $3,200 for the Nov. 13, 2020, incident from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or TOSHA.
The TOSHA report said that types of personal protective equipment were not selected to protect the affected Pen Gulf Inc. employees from the hazards identified during an assessment for a Jake Marshal LLC safe-work permit.
The fatal mishap took place during maintenance activity at the sprawling Bradley County factory that makes polysilicon for use in solar panels, according to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.
The incident resulted in a release of about 15 pounds of hydrochloric acid (HCl), a TDEC statement said.