LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- State regulators notified prosecutors this week that criminal charges can be brought in connection with inspection failures at the Givaudan Sense Colour plant in Louisville's Clifton neighborhood.
Two people died and 11 others were injured after an explosion at the food coloring factory last November. Federal investigators believe a cooking vessel didn't vent properly and subsequently overheated and burst.
The Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction found that the cooker that exploded was installed without a required permit that would have triggered a state inspection, according to documents WDRB News obtained through a public records request.
The department fined the Elizabethtown company that installed the vessel, Cochran Mechanical LLC, for allegedly violating state law and regulations, records show. The $500 penalty was assessed in January and has been paid, according to a department spokesperson.
In a brief telephone interview Friday, Curtis Cochran said he was not legally allowed to comment.
Meanwhile, the agency's commissioner, Jonathon "Max" Fuller, told the Jefferson County Attorney's criminal division in a letter dated Tuesday that while his office has no regulatory power over Givaudan, it "felt compelled" to explain that criminal penalties do apply.
"Givaudan Sense Colour operated several pressure vessels without a valid certificate of inspection, an offense which constitutes a Class B misdemeanor," Fuller wrote in the document reviewed by WDRB. "Should you wish to pursue criminal penalties, the Department stands ready to assist."
Under Kentucky law, someone found guilty of that charge faces up to 90 days in jail and a $250 fine. In his letter, Fuller noted the law makes it a separate offense for each day a pressure vessel is operated without a valid inspection certificate. Records show the Givaudan vessel that exploded and another one that wasn't inspected were installed sometime after July 12, 2021.
Jefferson County Attorney Mike O'Connell's office had yet to receive the letter as of Friday, spokesperson Josh Abner said.
"Our office is not an investigative agency," Abner said in a statement. "The Jefferson County Attorney's Office routinely reviews investigations for criminal acts provided to it by law enforcement officers and takes appropriate action."
The records obtained by WDRB shed new light on the vessel that exploded.
An accident investigation report by Mark Jordan, Kentucky's chief boiler inspector, says a Louisville repair shop notified state authorities in early July 2021 about two vessels undergoing repairs. The report shows Vendome Copper & Brass Works then got the repair permits.
However, the report notes that Kentucky officials never received permits for installing the two pieces of equipment built in 1978. It says there was "no reason for an inspector to attempt an inspection," since it's common for plants to store equipment and installing as needed.
The investigation found the maximum allowed working pressure for the cooking vessel that exploded is 75 pounds per square inch, or psi. That threshold is the "bursting pressure," according to the report.
And on the afternoon of Nov. 12, 2024, the amount of pressure on the vessel exceeded the Givaudan plant's preferred cooking level, a timeline shows.
That timeline, compiled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, paints a picture of the minutes leading to the explosion:
The cooker is loaded and put in use at 12:22 p.m. By 2:40 p.m., the pressure increases to 14.4 psi – above the 12 psi the plant wants for a 12-hour cook.
At 2:46, operators open a cooling water valve to try and reduce pressure and cool the product in the vessel. Five minutes later, the pressure rises to 50 psi. Five minutes after that, the pressure is at nearly 84 psi – past the "bursting" threshold.
The pressure rises to more than 113 psi at 2:57.
The video reviewed by investigators shows the tank starting to fail shortly thereafter.
Three seconds later, the report says, video and data feeds are lost when the explosion occurs. Givaudan employees Austin Jaggers, 29, and Keven Dawson Jr., 49, were killed.
The Swiss-based company didn't respond to a request for comment for this story, but it recently referenced the fatal explosion in its annual financial report.
"Our thoughts remain with all those affected by the tragic accident, in particular, the families and friends of our team members who sadly lost their lives," the company said. "We are conducting a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the explosion, and supporting agencies in trying to understand what happened."
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board has announced an investigation into the blast. The board — known as CSB — previously investigated the 2003 explosion at the Payne Street facility when it was owned by D.D. Williamson & Co. before Givaudan's acquisition in 2021.
The board concluded a vessel most likely failed after it overheated and exploded. One worker was killed.
The Kentucky Labor Cabinet, which oversees workplace safety standards in the state, also has opened an investigation into last November's explosion.
Givaudan said in a news release last month that it won't rebuild at the Clifton site and plans to consider elsewhere in Kentucky or neighboring states for a new plant.
This story may be updated.
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