CAMBRIA, WISCONSIN, U.S. — A fourth employee has died as a result of a May 31 explosion at the Cambria, Wisconsin, U.S., plant of Didion Milling Co. Angel Reyes, a 46-year-old pack operator, died at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S., on June 6, succumbing to injuries he suffered during the explosion.
In addition to Perez, the three other employees who were killed in the explosion were: Duelle Block, 27, a mill operator; Robert Goodenow, 53, a forklift operator; and Pawel Tordoff, 21, a packaging machine operator. Four of the 15 people injured in the explosion remain in the hospital.
The explosion occurred in the corn mill, not the adjacent ethanol plant that Didion Milling also owns. The cause of the explosion remains under investigation.
Didion Milling said the majority of its workers had returned to work by June 8.
Didion Milling is a Wisconsin-based, family-owned agricultural processing business.
According to the 2017 Grain & Milling Annual, the facility’s total 24-hour grind capacity is 14,000 bushels with storage capacity of 3.2 million bushels. The products produced at the facility include corn grits, flour, meal and pregelatinized products. The construction of the mill was completed in 1991. It is located 20 miles from Interstate 94 and is situated on the Wisconsin Southern Railroad.
In 2008, Didion Milling completed the construction of the ethanol plant that sits adjacent to the corn mill in Cambria. The ethanol plant uses the byproduct of the corn milling process to produce 50 million gallons of ethanol per year.