Four employees of Beta Steel Corporation were injured on Saturday in a slag eruption in the melt shop facility, located at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor.

The incident occurred at 10:15 p.m., company spokesman Joseph Gazarkiewicz told the Chesterton Tribune today. The four employees sustained minor injuries and were treated and released, Gazarkiewicz said.

Beta Steel was investigating the accident, he added.

Slag is a byproduct of the steelmaking process and though Gazarkiewicz declined to speculate on what may have caused the eruption, he did say that eruptions can be caused when water comes in contact with slag.

Beta Steel is a mini-mil operation incorporating a electric arc furnace which converts scrap steel into continuous cast steel slabs. The facility also features a hot strip rolling mill for processing those slabs into flat-rolled steel.

The Porter Fire Department was on standby at its station from 10:36 to 11:59 p.m. Saturday for the Portage Fire Department, which responded to the incident.

Posted 11/16/2009