All 11 Bodies Recovered. The Search Is Over.

The last two workers missing after Tuesday's catastrophic chemical tank rupture at Nippon Dynawave Packaging in Longview, Washington were found Saturday, according to the New York Times. The confirmed death toll is now 11.

What We Know From the Beginning

The tank ruptured at approximately 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, according to a joint statement from local authorities and Nippon Dynawave. The tank contained white liquor — a caustic chemical mixture used in the paper-pulping process.

Authorities initially couldn't even agree on what to call it. They cycled through "explosion," then "implosion," then settled on "rupture," according to ABC News. The confusion in official communications shaped how responders and the public understood the danger.

At Tuesday's evening briefing, Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein was direct: "The tank remains unstable, creating a dangerous situation for our personnel." Recovery had to wait. The site was too hot, literally and chemically.

The Human Cost

NBC News identified the first confirmed fatality by name: Gilbert Bernal, 52, a mill employee. His son Eli Bernal also worked at the facility. According to the family's pastor, Jim John, Eli was working the security gate during the rupture — waving in ambulances while not knowing whether his father was alive inside.

PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center received nine patients that day, according to NBC News. One didn't survive. Six others were listed in fair condition. Injuries included chemical burns and inhalation trauma. At least one firefighter was hurt during the response and was later treated and released.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson deployed state Ecology Department responders and activated Washington National Guard units for air quality monitoring and recovery assistance, according to ABC News. Longview Mayor Erik Halvorson said at Tuesday's briefing: "Our community has entered a period of profound tragedy and deep mourning."

Critical Questions Unanswered

Several key questions remain in early coverage:

Who owned this tank, and when was it last inspected?

Nippon Dynawave Packaging is a subsidiary of Nippon Paper Industries, a Japanese corporate giant. The Longview facility is a major regional employer. A tank containing highly caustic industrial chemicals catastrophically failing at 7 a.m. on a Tuesday warrants scrutiny of maintenance records, inspection history, and OSHA compliance — none of which has surfaced in initial coverage.

Where is OSHA?

Eleven workers are dead. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration should be on-site with investigators. No outlet has reported on a formal OSHA investigation launch.

What are the long-term environmental implications?

Gov. Ferguson activated air quality monitoring, indicating a real airborne chemical threat. White liquor is sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide. No outlet has reported what, if anything, leaked beyond the facility walls or entered storm drains near the Columbia River, where Longview sits.

The Recovery Operation Itself Was Dangerous

Battalion Chief Matt Amos of the Longview Fire Department told reporters Wednesday recovery would resume only after structural reinforcement. The tank still had liquid in it after the rupture, according to NBC News. First responders searched through an active chemical hazard zone to find people who, by Saturday, were all confirmed dead.

What Comes Next

The search is over. The accountability phase begins.

Federal investigators, OSHA, and potentially the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board need to establish exactly what failed — mechanically, procedurally, and in terms of corporate oversight. Nippon Dynawave has NOT publicly explained what caused the rupture.

Eleven families in Longview, a city of 38,000, are now planning funerals. One of them is Eli Bernal, who watched ambulances stream past him through a gate he was staffing, not yet knowing his father wouldn't make it out.