State settles lawsuit stemming from deadly AB Specialty plant explosion; ‘The Waukegan community was forever changed by this’

A lawsuit filed by the state of Illinois arising from an explosion of the AB Specialty Silicones plant in Waukegan three years ago — which killed four people and leveled the facility — was settled Friday, resolving differences between the company and the state.

The settlement was announced in a news release from Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul Tuesday in Chicago after the company, the state and Lake County filed a consent order in Lake County Court Friday containing the terms of the agreement.

Raoul took legal action less than a month after the explosion on May 3, 2019, which killed four workers at the Waukegan plant and sent unknown quantities of chemicals into the surrounding environment. The consent order assures the company is held responsible for the explosion and its aftermath.

“In many ways, the Waukegan community was forever changed by this explosion, which resulted in contamination of the surrounding environment but even more tragically, the loss of lives,” Raoul said in the release.

Among the previsions of the settlement, the company can no longer manufacture the types of hydrogen-releasing silicone emulsion products which includes the one produced when the plant exploded.

Within five months of filing the lawsuit, AB agreed to investigate the environmental impact of the contaminants released in the explosion and resulting fire to determine the effect of the event on the environment and take appropriate remediation action.

All of the reparation efforts were done under the supervision of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, according to the release. Illinois EPA Director John J. Kim said in the release Friday’s court order indicates the remedial efforts are complete.

“This final consent order marks the completion of remediation efforts necessary to address the vast environmental impacts that resulted from the devastating explosion at AB Specialty Silicones,” Kim said in the release.

Along with completing the required tasks, AB agreed to pay $40,000 as well as the costs incurred by the Illinois EPA, according to the release.

The initial complaint in the case alleged, “contaminants released by the explosion and water used to extinguish the fire allowed chemicals to seep into storm sewers,” and contaminated both a wetland and Osprey Lake, located approximately a mile away, according to the release.

Raoul filed the lawsuit after receiving a referral from the Illinois EPA. After the explosion, the Illinois EPA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency worked together to address immediate risks to public health and the environment.

Attempts to reach company representatives this week were unsuccessful.

Waukegan Mayor Ann Taylor said in an email Wednesday the city is glad one more chapter in the story of the explosion which took four lives is closed, and the company is bearing the expense of the damage to the environment.

“We are pleased that the consent order will order AB Specialty Silicone to pay for all the IEPA oversight costs and for remediation of the pollution caused by the explosion,” Taylor said in the email.

Though she is happy with the results of the litigation and its conclusion, Taylor said the impact of the human loss on the families of those killed, their co-workers and the community overall remains.

“Unfortunately for the families of the four workers who passed away in this tragedy, no amount of litigation will ever heal the wounds of losing their loved ones,” Taylor said in the email.

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board released a re-enactment video in late April which showed the blast was potentially preventable. Insufficient safety procedures by AB and a lack of appropriate regulations by the responsible federal government agencies were blamed.

AB makes a variety of products from chemicals, ranging from personal care items to materials used in construction. An unintentional mixing of two “incompatible chemicals” was responsible for the explosion, according to the CSB video.

Though the CSB determined the mixture of those chemicals was the likely cause of the explosion, the agency also said AB Silicones complied with all regulatory requirements of both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.