Unlicensed dangerous chemical storage led to sentencing: chemical companies must strengthen compliance management
Dangerous chemical safety management is not limited to booking, declaration, and packaging requirements during transport. It also involves production, storage, repacking, operation, and other stages.
Recently, Shanghai fire authorities reported a typical case. The person in charge of a company had stored dangerous chemicals without permission for a long period, keeping methanol, methylal, and other dangerous chemicals in a warehouse, and a fire later occurred during illegal repacking and blending operations.
The accident burned an area of about 200 square meters and created flowing fire, affecting the safety of nearby residents.
According to the investigation, the company had previously received two administrative penalties and had been ordered to rectify. However, after changing its site, it continued to store dangerous chemicals illegally.
Eventually, the Shanghai Railway Transport Court sentenced the responsible person to eight months in prison for the crime of dangerous operation.
This case became Shanghai's first judgment involving the crime of dangerous operation in the fire safety field.
1. Dangerous chemical storage must meet qualification requirements
Dangerous chemical storage is not ordinary warehousing. Companies should confirm whether they have relevant operation or storage qualifications, whether the storage site meets safety requirements, whether fire prevention, explosion prevention, and safety distance rules are satisfied, and whether dangerous chemicals are properly classified and managed.
Illegal storage may not only lead to administrative penalties. In serious cases, it may also involve criminal liability.
2. Repacking, blending, and transfer operations require strict management
In actual operations, some companies may conduct repacking, blending, package transfer, or temporary storage. Without proper safety conditions and management measures, these operations may increase the risk of fire, leakage, and personal injury.
Dangerous chemical companies should ensure that all related operations meet safety management requirements and avoid accidents caused by non-compliant handling.
3. Dangerous goods exporters should also pay attention to source compliance
For companies exporting dangerous chemicals, transport compliance is only one part of the chain. They should also confirm whether product classification is accurate, SDS/MSDS information is complete, packaging meets requirements, and storage and loading conditions comply with regulations.
Export transportation is only one stage of dangerous goods management. Source compliance helps reduce downstream transport risks.
VCEN reminder
Dangerous goods safety management runs through production, storage, transport, and export operations.
Companies should not only ask whether the cargo can be transported. They should also confirm whether the entire process from production to delivery meets safety management requirements.
VCEN International Logistics continues to monitor dangerous goods regulatory updates and safety cases, providing support for dangerous goods transportation, document review, packaging confirmation, and export compliance to help companies reduce compliance risks during dangerous goods transport.
Key notice
A Shanghai dangerous operation case shows that unlicensed dangerous chemical storage and non-compliant handling may lead to criminal liability.