Former chemical plant boss Spencer Brown has landed a £6,000 court bill after a blast ripped through his factory.

It was the second hefty penalty to hit 35-year-old Brown, managing director and founder of the ill-fated Pharmacos firm.

Brown was also disqualified by the court from becoming a director of a limited company for four years.

He was ordered to pay the £2,500 fine and £3,500 costs or face a three-month jail term in default.

The explosion happened after Brown and Pharmacos failed to ensure the safety of staff. They admitted breaching environment laws by making mercurial nitrate without proper authority.

Two men narrowly escaped serious injury in the explosion at the plant in Towerfield Close, Shoebury.

They claimed there was a white flash, a bang and a cloud of smoke which filled the air as they scrambled clear.

Only two years before the blast, Brown was fined £10,000 due to a factory blaze when he failed to make sure proper safety precautions were in place.

The fire broke out after a mistake with molten potassium. It caused an explosion which took the roof off the factory - then based in Southchurch Road, Southend.

The latest case was taken to court by Health and Safety Executive chiefs.

Troubles piled up for Brown and Pharmacos. Now the once-thriving firm has finally gone into the hands of liquidators, Basildon Crown Court heard.

Judge Peter Thompson said he took into account Brown's previous conviction and an unexplained delay by the prosecution in taking the case to court.

His lawyers told the judge that, although Brown was earning £31,000 a year as a Southend shop chemist, his debts over Pharmacos were mounting.

His old chemical plant was on the market at £240,000.

Brown, of Alexander Street, Southend, was said to have enjoyed 12 years of success with his business before matters took a turn for the worse.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.