Electrical Failure Ignites Dry Wood Dust at a Pallet Manufacturing Facility

Location: Mission
Regulated industry sector: Electrical - Low voltage electrical system (30V to 750V).

Incident Overview

At a pallet manufacturing facility, the connection point from the utility supply conductor to the main consumer service conductor failed. The failure resulted in accumulated wood dust igniting between the roof and soffit area, causing damage to the conductors and building structure. Loose connections and electrical draw on the service conductors likely caused overheating and melted the service conductor connections, copper and aluminum service conductors, and conductor insulation. Hot material dripping into the roof and soffit area ignited dry wood dust. The warm dry weather may have also been a factor.