West Reading chocolate factory explosion: Federal agency issues final report on the fatal blast

NTSB issues final report on 2023 explosion at Pa. chocolate factory that killed 7 workers

By Robert Moran, The Philadelphia Inquirer PHILADELPHIA — The National Transportation Safety Board this week made public its final report on the 2023 natural gas explosion at a West Reading chocolate factory that killed seven employees. The March 24, 2023, explosion at the R.M. Palmer Co. factory also injured 10 people and displaced three families from a neighboring apartment building that was severely damaged. The explosion caused an estimated …

West Reading chocolate factory explosion: Federal agency issues final report on the fatal blast

Nearly two years after an explosion at a West Reading chocolate factory that claimed the lives of seven workers, the federal agency investigating the blast has issued its final report on the tragedy. In a report dated March 18, the National Transportation Safety Board confirms that the explosion at the R.M. Palmer plant in the first block of South Second Avenue on March 23, 2023, was the result of a natural gas leak. The final report reiterates …

NTSB final report cites pipeline degradation, emergency response gaps in deadly R.M. Palmer explosion

Federal investigators have concluded that a deadly 2023 explosion at the R.M. Palmer Company candy factory in West Reading was caused by a degraded underground natural gas fitting that leaked gas into the facility, which later ignited—killing seven employees and injuring 10 others. The 110-page report, released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), determined that the explosion was fueled by natural gas leaking from a retired Aldyl…