Ashdod refinery disaster: "I feel like they are trying to cover it up"

"I feel her absence in everything," says Ilan Goichman. "There isn't one thing in our lives that isn't missing something. The fact that I sleep alone in bed is very strange to me. Her things are still here and I don't know what to do with them." About half a year after his wife Nitzan was killed in the fatal work accident at the Ashdod refinery, Ilan and their three children are trying to learn to live in a world where she is no longer.

The late Nitzan and Ilan have three children, aged 13, 8, and 4. Recently, the family went on a planned vacation to Cyprus. Nitzan's ticket was canceled, but another passenger sat in the seat that was supposed to be hers. "The whole flight we all just stared at her without noticing," says Ilan.

Alongside the grief, Ilan speaks of a difficult feeling of uncertainty. While his lawyer is in constant contact with the police, Ilan would have expected more direct communication and detailed explanations regarding the progress of the investigation. "If it weren't for the lawyer we hired and the people trying to help me, I probably wouldn't know almost anything," he notes. According to him, the family of Irina Radchuk, who was killed in the same accident, shares this feeling: "We are the ones who lost what is dearest to us, and in the end, we are the ones who have to beg them to explain to us what happened there."

Circumstances of the disaster

The disaster occurred on February 11. According to published details, during an inspection in a room where hazardous materials were used, Nitzan and Irina were connected to tanks that were supposed to contain medical air, but allegedly contained nitrogen. Both women lost consciousness.

The investigation is mostly complete, and the file has been transferred to the State Attorney's Office, although the toxicological examination by the Institute of Forensic Medicine has not yet been completed. According to Ilan, the refinery management presented him with an internal investigation, which found that the tanks were incorrectly labeled as medical air. "After the disaster, another 30 cylinders were located that were incorrectly labeled," he says. "The death of Nitzan and Irina saved the lives of dozens of people, as such tanks also reached medical institutions."

Ilan expresses confusion regarding the safety measures introduced after the accident: "It feels as if they first fix everything that was missing, and then explain to us that none of it would have helped anyway. You cannot, on one hand, add a camera, a distress button, and a fall sensor, and on the other hand, claim that none of these things could have changed the result."

Positions of the parties

Following the disaster, the Ministry of Labor imposed safety orders that suspended work at the laboratory until deficiencies were corrected. A ban on the sale of air cylinders remains in effect for the company "Yaakov Salem and Sons." The company rejects the allegations. Adv. Yarom Halevi, representing the supplier, claims that the investigation "focused unfairly on the company."

The police stated: "Contrary to the claims made, continuous contact was maintained with the families of the victims during the investigation. A toxicological examination has not yet been completed, however, it was decided to transfer the file to the State Attorney's Office for review at this stage. The investigation continues with the goal of reaching the truth."

The Ashdod refinery stated: "The company shares in the grief of the families of Irina Radchuk and Nitzan Goichman and has been accompanying them since the tragic event. We invest significant resources to maintain a safe work environment for all our employees."