The issue of combustible dust and its associated hazards (fire, deflagration, explosion) has always existed in several industries in one form or another. Only recently has the topic of combustible dust has become one of the main concerns and focal points in safety and health. In the past, most safety and health professionals perceived combustible dust hazards as low priority and low risk. Even so, this perception vastly changed after several high-profile combustible dust accidents/fatalities and increased enforcement of combustible dust hazards by the OSHA.
In the past decade, several highly publicized combustible dust accidents and fatalities have occurred including, but not limited to these incidents: