Pharmaceutical Industry Incidents

Pharmaceutical and fine chemical manufacturing involves reactive intermediates, flammable solvents, and thermally sensitive materials — often in batch processes where deviations from standard conditions can trigger rapid exotherms or explosions. CSB investigations here consistently highlight the importance of reactive hazard reviews, calorimetry studies, and management-of-change controls in process development.

3 CSB investigations in this database cover the pharmaceutical sector, spanning 1998–2024.

Open in Knowledge Graph All Incidents All Industries

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Pharmaceutical Industry Incidents (3)

Incident	Date	Location	Key Hazards
Sterigenics Ethylene Oxide Explosion	08/19/2004	Ontario, CA	Explosion, Fire
West Pharmaceutical Services Dust Explosion and Fire	01/29/2003	Kinston, NC	Dust Explosion, Explosion
Texas Tech University Chemistry Lab Explosion	01/07/2010	Lubbock, TX	Explosion, Runaway Reaction

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Frequently Involved Hazard Types

Explosion · Fire · Structural Failure · Chemical Release · Dust Explosion · Runaway Reaction

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Most Common Chemicals Involved

Ethylene Oxide, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Combustible Dust, Flammable Liquid

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Data sourced from CSB.gov public investigation reports. This site is an independent project not affiliated with the U.S. CSB.