DP WORLD PRINCE RUPERT
FAIRVIEW CONTAINER TERMINAL INCIDENT – UPDATE
22/12/2017
DP World can confirm that an incident occurred yesterday at the Prince Rupert Fairview Container Terminal in Canada. At approximately 9:45 am local time December 21, 2017, two employees working in a specific area of the container yard were assisted in getting medical treatment at the local hospital with symptoms of respiratory irritation. Thankfully they have been discharged within hours of their arrival. We continue to check on their well-being.
Our first priority is the safety and well-being of our employees, the local community, and any others who may have been affected. As such, as part of our emergency response, DP World Prince Rupert suspended operations and as a precaution immediately evacuated all personnel from the terminal’s container yard.
Our incident command management team also brought an external Industrial Hygienist to conduct on-site assessments and air quality monitoring. The source of the hazmat incident, an improperly secured ventilation hatch, on a tank containing Butyl Acetate – a chemical used as synthetic fruit food flavouring – was identified and quickly remedied.
Further assessments and air quality monitoring were conducted and the Industrial Hygienist declared the site safe at 8.00pm on Thursday, December 21 local time, with no inhalation hazard to the neighboring community related to this incident. The terminal returned to normal operations 7.00am Friday, December 22.
For media inquiries please contact:
Angela Kirkham, Manager Marketing and Communications
DP World Prince Rupert
604.880.7828