New York Factory Agrees to Fine After Explosion

Federal workplace safety authorities say an upstate New York copper wire manufacturer has agreed to pay nearly $33,000 in fines after an explosion injured an employee.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says Tecnofil Chenango SAC will also take additional steps to address safety concerns.

The agency investigated after the Feb. 2 explosion sprayed molten copper on the worker, who was severely burned, and found 24 serious violations of safety standards at the plant in the Chenango County town of Sherburne.

The explosion was caused by the lack of a pressure-relief valve on a machine designed to cool the copper as it’s made into wire.

The settlement was announced Monday.

Sherburne is 41 miles southeast of Syracuse.