A federal safety agency says it will hold a public hearing in Portland in late June about an industrial procedure blamed for the fatal explosion at Middletown’s Kleen Energy power plant, The Associated Press reports.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board says the June 28 forum will take place at the Saint Clements Castle banquet and conference facility in Portland.
The facility is across the Connecticut River from the Feb. 7 explosion that killed six workers at  Kleen Energy Systems plant.
The blast occurred as crews cleaned pipes by blowing natural gas through them, a common procedure nationwide that the safety board criticizes as hazardous. The Connecticut hearing is expected to focus on the dangers posed by the procedure dangers and possible safer alternatives.
