Shell fined for explosions, gas leak at Dutch chemical plant

A Dutch court has fined oil giant Shell 2.5 million euros ($2.8 million) for breaching Dutch labor and environmental laws in a case linked to two explosions and a gas leak at a chemical plant south of Rotterdam.

The East Brabant court ruled Monday that Shell did not take sufficient precautions to prevent two blasts and a subsequent fire that injured two workers when the company restarted two reactors at a chemical plant in the village of Moerdjik on June 3, 2014.

The court also held Shell liable for a leak of ethylene oxide gas that lasted from Nov.14, 2015, until Jan. 27, 2016, at the same plant.

Shell did not immediately respond to an email and phone call seeking comment.