Autopsy reports reveal alkaline chemical burns in 10 victims of Longview paper mill explosion
Jun 11, 2026, 12:24 PM
The autopsy reports for 10 victims of the Longview paper mill explosion were released Thursday, with all victims suffering alkaline chemical burns, among other injuries.
The Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office released the autopsies for 10 of the victims involved, though 11 people died in total.
Each victim suffered alkaline chemical burns, but other injuries included blunt force injuries and asphyxia due to aspiration of a foreign object. All injuries were deemed to be an accident.
The names and injuries of each worker who died are listed below:
- Gilberto Bernal, age 52, of Kelso, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Tyler Covington, age 2,9 of Castle Rock, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Dale Miller, age 54, of Portland, OR, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Robert Wilson, age 48, of Clatskanie, OR, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns and blunt force injuries.”
- Jared Ammons, age 35, of Longview, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Bradley Covington, age 27, of Castle Rock, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Clinton Doran, age 26, of Kelso, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- John Forsberg, age 51, of Longview, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
- Braydon Finkas, age 38, of Cathlamet, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns and asphyxia due to aspiration of a foreign object.”
- Norman Barlow, age 58, of Vancouver, WA, Cause of death determined to be due to “alkaline chemical burns.”
Death toll rose as recovery efforts continued
Seven of the nine people unaccounted for after a Longview packaging plant tank ruptured were found dead on May 29, the Longview Fire Department confirmed in a news conference Friday. At the time, two remained unaccounted for.
This comes after two people were confirmed dead after the tank containing white liquor ruptured early Tuesday morning, bringing the total number of deaths to nine. At least eight others, including one firefighter, were injured.
Longview Fire Department (LFD) Chief Brad Hannig said at a news conference Thursday that all recovered individuals underwent decontamination before being transported to the Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office for identification. He thanked the community for an outpouring of support.
“We are incredibly humbled by the outpouring of support from the community for our first responders and the affected families. We know many people want to help and are looking for ways to contribute. Our team is currently working to coordinate verified donation and support channels, and we will share that information with the community as soon as it becomes available,” Hannig said.
EPA: Air is clean, drinking water is safe in Longview
Brooks Stanfield, a federal on-scene coordinator with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said that the pH in the water is back to the normal range.
Stanfield said that officials have been monitoring the air quality and have not found any air contaminants.
“The main contaminant we were concerned with was hydrogen sulfide. Knowing what we know about this facility and the contaminants involved, I can report to you that we’ve been monitoring 24 hours a day since we arrived here, and not only have we not seen any exceedances of health criteria, we have not actually had a detection of hydrogen sulfide or any of the other air contaminants we might have encountered, so that’s really good news. But we will continue on with that air monitoring operation for the foreseeable future,” she said.
The EPA was tracking water quality after a large volume of high pH caustic liquid from the facility was discharged through the storm drain system and into a ditch along the north side of Industrial Way. That ditch is connected to a dike network that winds throughout the entire Longview community, according to Stanfield, running through residential backyards and areas accessible to people and pets.
Elevated pH levels were first detected in late May near the facility’s outfall and have since migrated through the system. Of particular concern was that the ditch sits directly above a sole-source aquifer and well field that supplies Longview’s primary drinking water.
“It literally runs through people’s backyards. People have access to it. People and dogs can swim in it. It’s obviously something where there is a risk for people to come in contact with that liquid if we don’t prevent them from doing so,” Stanfield said.
In consultation with local utilities, the EPA developed a plan to flush the high pH liquid away from the well field and began those operations last month.
“That strategy involves two main parts, which one is drawing fresh water from the Cowlitz River on the east side of this network, and pushing the water west by diluting and flooding that, and flushing that water to the west at the same time,” Stanfield explained. “We are opening up two discharge pumps that discharge water to the Columbia River on the west side of this network. They are pulling that water to the west and discharging water to the Columbia River. This is primarily an effort to get that water away from the drinking water wells.”
But most importantly, Stanfield said the water is safe to drink.
Longview fire crews respond to tank rupture at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company
LFD said 10 individuals were transported to hospitals after the tank ruptured at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company, causing hundreds of thousands of gallons of dangerous chemicals to spill. Several victims suffered chemical burns and inhalation injuries, the fire department reported.
At approximately 7:18 a.m., LFD responded to a hazardous materials incident at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company at 3401 Industrial Way.
Officials noted there is no threat to the surrounding community.
Cowlitz 2 Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein originally reported that the impacted vat was an 80,000-gallon tank, roughly 60% full of a highly caustic chemical called white liquor. However, officials updated that number, now stating the tank held approximately 900,000 gallons of white liquor.
Longview Fire and Cowlitz 2 Fire and Rescue estimate roughly 90,000 gallons of material may remain inside the damaged tank.
LFD Battalion Chief Mike Gorsuch described the scene as a “mass casualty scene,” according to The Associated Press.
“Our thoughts and our prayers are with everybody impacted by this tragedy,” Washington Governor Bob Ferguson said.
A photo of the explosion in Longview. (Photo courtesy of the KIRO Newsradio textline)
Several victims transported to nearby hospitals after chemical rupture in Longview
All victims were transported by ambulance to PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center in Longview and PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver.
Gorsuch noted that first responders had decontaminated patients before they were transported to local hospitals.
“The initial call came out as chemical burns, and initial resources found that there were multiple patients,” Gorsuch told KIRO Newsradio.
LFD crews and a Hazardous Materials Team were at the scene, working alongside Nippon Dynawave employees to mitigate the product and container that was involved.
The responding agencies included LFD, Cowlitz 2 Fire and Rescue, the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office, and other emergency responders. In total, the response included five fire engines, seven ambulances, four chief officers, and a Hazardous Materials Team.
Residents were asked to avoid Industrial Way and the surrounding area.
“Recovery operations remain focused on safely accessing all affected areas of the facility, recovering victims, and supporting impacted families, while ensuring the safety of emergency responders working within unstable conditions,” the fire department stated.
Longview pulp and paper mill currently has around 550 employees
The Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company is a kraft pulp and paper mill and liquid packaging plant. The pulp and paper mill currently has roughly 550 employees, while the liquid packaging plant has about 450 employees, according to the Washington State Department of Ecology.
“When anything happens at the mills, we all know someone affected,” Spencer Boudreau, the vigil organizer and former Longview mayor, told KIRO 7. “This is probably the worst job site disaster we have had here, ever.”
The scene after a tank ruptured in Longview. (Photo courtesy of the Longview Fire Department)
Washington officials visit site of implosion
Officials visited the site Thursday, including state Rep. Jim Walsh, who serves the Longview area, along with Ferguson, Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, and U.S. Senator Patty Murray.
“While I don’t agree with the governor on very much, it was good of him to come down,” Walsh told “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio.
He said the recovery effort is being led by the local fire districts.
“It was very good to see the different levels of government all responding pretty effectively to a terrible situation,” Walsh added.
This story was originally published on May 26, 2026. It has been updated and republished since then.
Contributing: The Associated Press; Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest
Follow Jason Sutich on X. Send news tips here.
