Givaudan employee describes 'lots of leaks' at Louisville plant that exploded

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- An employee of the Louisville manufacturing plant that exploded Tuesday, killing two people and injuring 11 others, said Givaudan Sense Colour is a "dangerous place to work."

Angelita Oldham told WDRB News she raised concerns with company management and filed a report this year with federal workplace safety regulators. Specifically, she claims that the plant has leaked sulfur dioxide, a chemical gas that can be toxic to humans and animals. 

"We have a lot of leaks of SO2 that I had to voice my concern about," Oldham said Wednesday. "It wasn't fixed. I don't know why it leaks or why not, but I know I have to have my job, so you kind of deal with it, and I did."

A representative at Givaudan's Louisville office closed the door on a WDRB reporter Wednesday after saying she "can't talk." As of 3 p.m. Thursday, a spokesperson at the company's Switzerland headquarters hasn't yet responded to a request for comment concerning Oldham's claims.

"It's crazy to me," Oldham said. "It's a horrible smell. It chokes you up within a matter of minutes."

Residents across Louisville reported feeling the explosion around 3 p.m. Tuesday, which occurred at 1901 Payne St., just east of Interstate 64. The explosion shattered windows and shook homes in the Clifton neighborhood, just east of downtown.

Louisville first responders quickly responded to what it called a "hazardous materials incident" and issued a shelter in place for a 1-mile radius from the area. By 4:40 p.m., EMA lifted the shelter-in-place but said an evacuation order for the two blocks surrounding the building remained in place.

Louisville emergency officials confirmed two people died in the explosion, one of whom was recovered hours later buried beneath the rubble.

Mayor Craig Greenberg said firefighters re-entered the building late Tuesday night to ensure everyone was accounted for. Louisville Fire Chief Brian O'Neill said firefighters took a "tremendous risk" to get to the second victim, not pulling him from the rubble until after midnight after a three-and-a-half-hour search.

"These two individuals who have passed went to their job in an ordinary day to provide for their family when the unthinkable happened," Mayor Craig Greenberg said. "This is an incredibly sad and tragic incident." 

Another victim died after being transported to UofL Hospital, one of 13 people who died or were injured in the blast. Family members confirmed Wednesday morning that Austin Jaggers, 29, was one of the victims of the explosion. Greenberg said Wednesday the city isn't releasing details on the victims' identities at the request of the families, including how or where they died.

"It was my friend, and where he was," Oldham said. "I worked there."

UofL Health Chief Medical Officer Jason Smith said seven people were brought to UofL Hospital downtown, one of whom arrived in critical condition and later died. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, only one victim remained at the hospital in "stable" condition with non-life-threatening injuries. Five have been discharged.

Oldham said she had Tuesday off, so she wasn't at Givaudan when the explosion happened. But she said she's brought concerns to her plant manager and even filed a report earlier this year with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which she said has yet to respond.

There is no record of workplace safety inspections or other actions at Givaudan this year, according to OSHA's online database.

The Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet, which oversees the federal safety program in the state, does not identify who files specific complaints. Spokeswoman Jill Midkiff said in a statement that a complaint was filed in late August for an entity listed as "DDW" in a residential area of Muhammad Ali Boulevard. 

Staff made two attempts to contact the person who made the complaint to get more information, she said, but they didn't get a response. The complaint was then closed. 

"My heart is hurting because I lost a friend ..." Oldham said. "I don't feel like my company ... took care of us like they should."

She's still processing what happened. On Wednesday afternoon, she visited some of her colleagues in the hospital who survived.

"I want to try to cheer anybody up that I can, but it still hurts inside," Oldham said.

Previous Explosion

Greenberg said employees inside the plant initially told officials "everything was normal activity when the explosion occurred." He said representatives from Givaudan were invited to the city's Wednesday morning news conference but didn't come. A Givaudan spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about why company representatives did not appear at Wednesday's news conference or how management failed to account for all of its employees after the explosion.

Stefanie Lauber, head of corporate communications for Givaudan International, confirmed the deaths Wednesday morning in a statement.

"On Tuesday, late afternoon U.S. time, there was an explosion at the Sense Colour factory in Louisville, Kentucky. We are deeply saddened to share the news that two of our team members lost their lives in this accident. Several other individuals were also injured as a result. We are grieving with the families, friends, and loved ones of those that were lost and injured during this very difficult time."

Givaudan Sense Colour is part of Swiss-based fragrance and food coloring company Givaudan that bought D.D. Williamson in 2021. Givaudan Sense Color is headquartered in Louisville and has locations in Wisconsin, Brazil, England, Ireland, China, Malaysia and Africa.

In 2003, records show the D.D. Williamson plant was the site of an explosion that killed one employee and caused the release of aqua ammonia. A few dozen people in the area had to be evacuated. 1,500 residents were forced to shelter in place.

The blast occurred in a vessel called a feed tank used in the manufacturing of caramel coloring for food. Inspectors at the time concluded that the company did not have basic standards in place to determine if the equipment was sound. D.D. Williamson also was faulted for failing to properly train workers about the risks of feed tanks overheating. The feed tank likely failed and burst because it overheated, causing extreme pressure, investigators concluded.

State regulators fined D.D. Williamson $10,000 in connection with that blast. Four citations were for "serious" violations, including one under a federal rule requiring employers to keep areas free of known hazards that could kill or injure workers.

D.D. Williamson later agreed to pay $600,000 in civil penalties over alleged violations of the Clean Air Act and its regulations. The company improved the Louisville plant after the 2003 explosion, building a new facility for its manufacturing operations, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

As part of that federal consent decree, D.D. Williamson was ordered to conduct an independent full hazard study and enact those recommendations, as well as to train managers in assessing risks.

There are no known safety violations in the past 10 years at the plant, according to online records. 

But in 2023, the plant agreed to $7,500 in fines to settle allegations from Louisville’s Air Pollution Control District. City regulators claimed plant officials did not notify them about excess emissions and did not submit annual compliance reports.

An explosion at a Givaudan plant in northern Kentucky in late 2012 scattered debris but didn't injure anyone.

Related Stories:

• 2nd victim in Louisville plant explosion was pulled from rubble hours later, mayor says
• 2 dead in plant explosion in Louisville's Clifton area that damaged homes, businesses

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