Coal ash leak at Kentucky power plant sends three workers to hospital

A coal ash leak at a power plant in Centertown, Kentucky, sent three workers to the hospital Wednesday.

The major leak from one of the silos at the Big Rivers Electric DB Wilson Power Plant also caused low visibility in the area, with westbound traffic on Kentucky State Route 85 being diverted, the Ohio County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.

Shortly before 9 a.m. local time, the three plant employees were working on unplugging the facility’s western silo which contains fly ash, a type of coal ash and a byproduct from creating power.

“As the silo was unplugged, the material began flowing out of an inspection door near where the contractors were working. … All other employees and contractors were accounted for and safe,” Big Rivers Electric said in a release.

While the level of airborne ash made police think there was an outright tower collapse, firefighters and emergency responders found out instead there was a leak.

“What had happened was a valve inside one of these towers had become stuck open. There [were] three employees inside working on the inside of the silo,” Ohio County Sheriff Adam Wright told WFIE-TV.

Sheriff Wright also explained that the substance in the silo was thick, almost flowery in texture, with the tower being 80% full. The coal ash escaped as the valve remained stuck open.

“When it started seeping in through the valve, there [were] three personnel inside. Two were able to get out and one was trapped and buried inside that product. The two people that got out actually went back in to save their coworker, so they became in some serious trouble,” Sheriff Wright told WFIE-TV.

All three workers, none of them named by the sheriff’s office, were taken to a hospital after the trapped person was rescued by the plant’s emergency response team. Sheriff Wright told WFIE-TV that the current condition of the three men was unknown.

Plant staff also isolated the affected part of the silo and shut off any further leakage of the fly ash.

“We want to thank Ohio County emergency crews for their quick response this morning. The Wilson Station Emergency Response Team also moved quickly to reach the contractors and evaluate the area for safety risks. I commend Wilson Station employees for taking immediate action to correct the problem,” Big Rivers Electric CEO Bob Berry said in a statement. 

Coal ash can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, throat, nose and throat. If consumed, the ash can also cause vomiting, nausea and diarrhea, according to the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Fly ash is primarily made up of heavy metals, a category that includes chromium, copper, mercury and arsenic.

Big Rivers Electric said that it is communicating with state environmental officials and that site cleanup will follow guidelines from the Environmental Protection Agency.