Two Workers Collapse Inside Resin Reaction Vat at Shiga Factory

Overview

• A site supervisor alerted emergency services after finding two men unconscious inside a large reaction vat at a Light Chemical Industry plant in Yasu City, Shiga Prefecture.
• Fire department rescue teams recovered the two men from the vat and transported them to hospital in cardiopulmonary arrest.
• Local police and fire authorities are investigating the incident at the reaction vessel used to mix materials for synthetic resins.
• One news report says the victims were later confirmed dead at hospital and that rescuers found low oxygen levels inside the roughly two-meter-deep vessel, suggesting possible asphyxiation.
• The factory’s reaction vat is large enough to admit a whole body and the workers were performing material-removal or polishing work, raising confined-space and process-safety concerns that could prompt inspections and tighter site controls.