Nov 8 marks the tenth anniversary of the acetone explosion and fire at a krill oil production plant in Sherbrooke that killed three and injured another 18 people. The accident at Neptune Technologies and Bioressources sent a massive plume of smoke into the air that could be seen in many parts of the Eastern Townships.
Hernan Guerrero, 44, and Abel Regalado Calderin, 30 died in the explosion with a third victim, Marc Couture, died the following weekend while being treated for severe burns.
In the weeks and months after the explosion, the company was fined by the government for exceeding the amount of acetone they were legally required to store on site. Quebec’s workplace health and safety commission later referred to the plant as having been “an accident waiting to happen” due to a combination of unprofessional renovations and weaknesses in the company’s health and safety policy.
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Neptune technologies explosion: 10 years later
By Gordon Lambie
