West Charlotte chemical company where worker was injured has previous violations
The west Charlotte chemical company where a worker was injured in a drilling accident Friday was fined for workplace violations in recent years, according to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
DyStar Group, which has a facility on Wilkinson Boulvard and another in Reidsville, was fined $750 in 2023 by the North Carolina Department of Health for a health violation at its Reidsville location, according to OSHA.
There were no details, but the company violated a hand protection standard, according to OSHA.
“Employers shall select and require employees to use appropriate hand protection when employees’ hands are exposed to hazards such as those from skin absorption of harmful substances; severe cuts or lacerations; severe abrasions; punctures; chemical burns; thermal burns; and harmful temperature extremes,” OSHA’s website says.
The 2023 violation was labeled “serious,” and the company paid $550. The company also paid $8,150 for a 2024 violation at its Wilkinson Boulevard facility, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency records. The violation is unclear.
On Friday, a third-party employee working at the facility was hospitalized after drilling into a tank that pressurized and sprayed sulfuric acid onto the worker, The Charlotte Observer’s news partner WSOC reported. The worker sustained burns and eye injuries.
The North Carolina Department of Labor is investigating last week’s incident, spokesperson John Wesley Waugh said in an email.
“Because it is an open investigation, no further comment can be made at this time,” Waugh said.
The location on Wilkinson Boulevard, called DyStar Carolina Chemical, is supposed to consolidate with the Reidsville location, called DyStar LP, the company announced in a 2025 news release. The company, which manufactures textiles and chemicals, has other locations in the U.S., Europe, Asia and Africa, according to its website.
The company’s facility in Cincinnati, Ohio, was fined $62,500 for four violations in 2023, but only paid $7,500 for one, according to OSHA. That violation was for failing to have proper fall protection for workers, including guardrails or safety nets. Workers were exposed to a fall height of 7 feet, 10 inches at a facility in 2023.
The three other violations, of which the company paid nothing for each, were failing to conduct a periodic inspection on control of hazardous energy, failing to train employees in hazardous energy control, and following the proper procedures of hazardous energy control lockout, according to OSHA.
This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 3:04 PM.
