Around noon in an automobile equipment plant, a paint booth was shut down (except for its ventilation) in order to proceed with routine maintenance work. During the filter change around 5 pm, one of the 2 technicians on the job noticed that the aeration duct was vibrating while emitting a thud. He observed that a fire had been sparked near the ventilation turbine, immediately sounded the alarm and attempted to snuff out the initial flames with an extinguisher. The second technician saw that a fire was also smouldering in the filters and left the booth to turn off the power supply. Using an extinguisher, he failed to contain the fire onset. Once alerted, a 3rd technician sought to offer assistance, but given the speed at which flames were spreading and the quantity of smoke released, all 3 employees chose to evacuate the premises. At the designated assembly point, they met the other plant personnel, who had fled the building and congregated once the alarm first sounded. Fire-fighters controlled the accident within an hour. Extinction water was stored while awaiting analysis. The paint booth, drying oven, structural frame and part of the electrical network were damaged. Other installations were left inoperable (shot blasting, surface treatment and paint), and required work to be subcontracted. Technical unemployment measures are taken. The Inspection Authorities for Classified Facilities recorded the incident. Operating under substandard conditions, the surface treatment and paint installations were shut down until receiving authorisation to restart. The plant operator assessed the possibility of modifying the process implemented.
