Cooling Tower Incidents and Failures¶
Cooling towers can be involved in Legionella outbreaks or fire events from combustible fill materials and nearby ignition sources, and failures in biocide treatment or adjacent fire suppression have escalated incidents. These investigations document the CSB's findings and recommendations for cooling tower safety.
4 CSB investigations in this database involve cooling tower as a primary or contributing equipment factor, spanning 1998–2024.
Cooling Tower Incidents and Failures (4)¶
| Incident | Date | Industry | Key Hazard |
|---|---|---|---|
| T2 Laboratories Inc. Reactive Chemical Explosion | 12/19/2007 | Chemical Manufacturing | Runaway Reaction, Thermal Runaway |
| First Chemical Corp. Reactive Chemical Explosion | 10/13/2002 | Chemical Manufacturing | Runaway Reaction, Explosion |
| MFG Chemical Inc. Toxic Gas Release | 04/12/2004 | Chemical Manufacturing | Runaway Reaction, Toxic Release |
| Valero McKee Refinery Propane Fire | 02/16/2007 | Petroleum Refining | Fire, Flash Fire |
Related Hazard Types¶
Runaway Reaction · Overpressure · Fire · Chemical Release · Explosion
Related Equipment¶
Relief Valve Failures and Overpressure Events · Valve Failures in Process Plant Incidents · Reactor Explosions and Runaway Reactions · Pressure Vessel Explosions and Failures · Mixer · Agitator
Data sourced from CSB.gov public investigation reports. This site is an independent project not affiliated with the U.S. CSB.