Months before the deadly late-July explosion at Horizon Biofuels in Fremont, Nebraska, state inspectors flagged concerns about excessive sawdust and a potentially faulty dust collection system at the facility.
In January, a neighboring business filed an air quality complaint with the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy, alleging sawdust from the plant was coating vehicles and clogging drainage ditches. State and city inspections confirmed the accumulation, and in February, Fremont officials ordered Horizon Biofuels to clean sawdust from storm drains.
During a February site visit, an environmental specialist reported that plant general manager Chad Schoeneck acknowledged possible issues with the baghouse system — an industrial air filter designed to trap fine dust. At the time, the plant was shut down due to extreme cold, and Schoeneck said a full inspection would occur when operations resumed. State officials later said they received no follow-up correspondence on any corrective measures.
On July 29, investigators believe an accidental dust fire during manufacturing sparked the explosion that killed plant employee Dylan Danielson, 32, and his daughters, Fayeah, 8, and Hayven, 12, who were visiting that day. Structural instability and an ongoing fire at the site have since limited further investigation.
Safety experts say wood dust, like grain dust, becomes highly combustible when finely powdered and dispersed in the air. Patrick Anderson, an environmental attorney, noted that excessive dust in plant photos suggested maintenance may have lapsed, though investigators have not confirmed the baghouse played a role.
The Chemical Safety Board, OSHA, and other agencies are investigating. OSHA had previously cited the plant in 2012 for allowing hazardous wood dust buildup. The Chemical Safety Board says it hopes to prevent similar tragedies, pointing to past fatal dust explosions where poor safety practices were to blame.
Horizon Biofuels, which recycles wood waste into pellets for heating and animal bedding, has pledged to fully cooperate with investigators. The company also experienced a fire in 2014 but resumed operations within six months.
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