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An industrial worker found dead on Thursday, May 5 was identified by officials as 62-year-old Jack O'Keefe, of Methuen, according to the Essex County District Attorney’s office.
O'Keefe was one of five people who were inside the building, a metal addition on the rear of the larger facility, at 9 Opportunity Way when a chemical explosion occurred.
Read more: Body Of Missing Worker Found After Chemical Explosion At Newburyport Industrial Park
Four of the workers were transported to a hospital where they were treated and discharged. O'Keefe remained unaccounted for through much of Thursday, as the building was too severely damaged for fire and search crews to enter.
His body was recovered around 5:30 p.m., about 17 hours after the explosion was reported to the Newburyport Fire Department.
PCI Synthesis, a pharmaceutical ingredients manufacturer, is registered at the address where the explosion, which was declared a level three hazmat incident, occurred. The incident also prompted a seven-alarm response from other first responders.
Newburyport Firefighters and State Hazmat technicians worked overnight and through Friday to remove potential hazards from the badly damaged building, a process that Newburyport Fire calls "painstaking."
Among the removed items are approximately four dozen large barrels containing chemicals including, acetone, methanol and isopropyl alcohol.
The metal add-on building suffered significant structural damage in the explosion. A crane was brought in on Friday to shore up a metal support beam as crews worked.
Air meters set up around the scene's perimeter have not detected hazards in the air. Newburyport Fire officials emphasize that there is no danger to the public.
O'Keefe's body will be turned over to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The Essex County District Attorney's Office will conduct the death investigation.
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