Survivor of burning Pennsylvania factory explosion fell into vat of chocolate

A woman pulled alive from the rubble of a Pennsylvania chocolate factory after an explosion that killed seven co-workers says flames engulfed the building and her arm when the ground gave way beneath her.

It could have been the end, if she hadn’t fallen into a vat of liquid chocolate.

The dark liquid extinguished her inflamed arm, but Patricia Borges ended up breaking her collarbone and both heels.

She would spend the next nine hours screaming for help and waiting for help as firefighters battled hell and helicopters slammed over the RM Palmer Co. plant.

“When I started to burn, I thought that was the end for me,” Borges, 50, told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview from his hospital bed in West Reading, Utah. Pennsylvania, minutes from the chocolate factory where she worked as an operator.

Borges said she was ignited by the explosion, when she fell below her collapse and fell into the tank, extinguishing the flames.PA


Borges in an undated photo before the factory explosion.PA

National Transportation Safety Board investigators interviewed Borges on Friday, according to his family.

The March 24 explosion at the RM Palmer killed seven of Borges’ colleagues and injured 10.

Federal, state and local investigations are ongoing.

A cause has not been determined, but the Federal Transportation Safety Agency has called it a natural gas explosion.

“It’s all on the table at this point because we still haven’t completed the investigation. To say it’s one way or the other, I wouldn’t say that at this point,” Beohm said.

West Reading, Penn. a chocolate explosion killed seven people on March 24, 2023.PA

Two state police fire marshals are working to determine the cause and origin of the explosion, he said.

The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which regulates workplace safety, was also on site.

Natural gas was not the only possible cause.

Local hospitals received 10 patients and transferred two to other facilities, while two others were admitted in good and fair condition, respectively, and the rest had been discharged.PA

Chocolate makers and other food manufacturers must take steps to mitigate the risk of fire and explosion from flammable dust produced by ingredients such as cocoa powder and cornstarch, Holly said. Burgess, technical manager for industrial and chemical safety at the National Fire Protection Association, a nonprofit organization. group that produces hundreds of codes and standards.

Burgess said smaller particles that stay in the air pose a greater danger than larger particles that quickly fall to the ground.

Food manufacturers are expected to determine the combustibility of the dust, perform a risk analysis, and then take steps to manage it.

“Every batch is different, so the chocolatey material in the cocoa I get from one place may have a larger particle size or a smaller particle size. So that’s where they usually have to do their own testing,” Burgess said, speaking generally and not about the situation in Palmer.

A cause has not been determined, but the Federal Transportation Safety Agency has called it a natural gas explosion.PA

Commercial ovens and furnaces, as well as commercial refrigerants using ammonia, are other major explosion hazards in food factories, she said.

Records from OSHA, the federal workplace safety agency, show only one violation at the West Reading plant in the past five years.

In 2018, an employee lost the tip of a finger while cleaning an air-pressure ball valve.

The company agreed to pay a fine of $13,000.

The plant, shown in a pre-explosion photo, was run by RM Palmer Co. had received just one violation from OSHA in the past five years.Google Earth

In January, records show, OSHA imposed a fine of more than $12,000 after an inspection at RM Palmer’s plant in neighboring Wyomissing.

Details of this case were not immediately available.

RM Palmer said in a statement over the weekend that everyone in the company was devastated and that it was contacting employees and their families through first responders and disaster recovery organizations because its communication systems were broken.

“The tragic events that occurred on Friday had a profound impact on all of us at RM Palmer, and we appreciate the outpouring of support as we all continue to deal with the loss of our friends and colleagues,” the company said on Facebook. . Sunday.

The company did not comment further. He did not respond to questions from The Associated Press on Monday.

The Berks County Coroner’s Office identified two of the victims as Amy Sandoe, 49, of Ephrata, and Domingo Cruz, 60, of Reading, and said “further forensic examinations” would be required to positively identify the other five victims. Autopsies were expected to be completed by the end of the week, officials said.

Rescue teams had used thermal imaging equipment and dogs to search for possible survivors after the blast destroyed a building and damaged a nearby building.

Crews were using heavy equipment to methodically and carefully remove debris from the site, according to Police Chief Wayne Holben.

Three buildings around the site have been condemned as a precaution until further examination by structural engineers to ensure their safety.

Officials said they had no update on the condition of a woman pulled alive from the rubble early Saturday.

Borges screamed for help for nine hours as first responders battled the blaze.PA

Mayor Samantha Kaag said she was apparently on the second floor and found in a “hopeful circumstance”, calling for rescuers despite her injuries after a dog found her.

Reading Hospital said it received 10 patients and transferred two to other facilities, while two others were admitted in good and fair condition, respectively, and the rest were discharged.

Dr. Charles Barbera, president and chief executive of the hospital, said one of the admitted patients was discharged on Monday.

Three buildings around the site have been condemned as a precaution until further examination by structural engineers to ensure their safety.PA

UGI spokesman Joe Swope said the utility detected leaks in a few locations at street level some distance from the plant after gas was restored and completed repairs.

“The company believes these are unrelated to the Palmer explosion,” he said.

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