February 2016 Newsletter

WHAT’S HAPPENING?
February 2016
Congratulations
Daniel Lay
Imran Shaik
Mark Taimre
who have passed
accreditation
for full
Membership
and to
Terry Lunney
Victoria
and
Venkatesan
Narayanaswamy
West Australia
Our new
Members
6 Burnt to Death in Pharma Reactor Blast
Six employees of an intermediary drug manufacturing unit died and their
colleague suffered serious injuries in an explosion at the factory in
Mankhal near Maheswaram on the outskirts of the city of Hyderabad.
A 'Nutsche filter', an industrial filter, at Hasita Aromatics Pty Ltd in
Mankhal industrial area of Maheswaram exploded during filtration of
certain chemicals.
When the explosion took place, 11 workers were at the unit. "Six
workers died on the spot and another suffered injuries, while the
remaining four workers, who were at a distance, escaped unhurt," the SI
said.
Due to the intensity of the explosion, the asbestos tin-sheet roof and
walls of the factory were ripped apart. "The blast was so powerful that
the bodies were thrown up into the air and one body was found outside
the unit," sources said.
Image: New Indian
Express
Image: The Hindu
The intermediary drug manufacturing unit was strewn with pieces of
flesh and severed limbs.
Among the six victims, the four workers from Chhattisgarh took the full
impact of the explosion. In fact, police and forensic experts had to put
together their mutilated body parts for post-mortem. Satyanarayana's
body was found nearly 20-feet away from the filter, while a casual
worker's body was found in an open place outside the plant, the sources
added.
As the bodies were singed beyond recognition due to chemical burns, a
team of forensic doctors from the Osmania General Hospital visited the
factory and conducted post-mortem there itself.
Source: The Times of India
Canadian Company Fined C$5.3M
Stock image
AIDGC 2016
Annual
Conference
September 9
ParkRoyal
Sydney
“Transport of
Dangerous
Goods”
Interested in
contributing?
Contact Peter Hunt
HAZMAT
May 4 & 5
2016
in Melbourne
An Ontario court imposed $5.3 million in fines on Sunrise Propane, the
Toronto company which experienced an explosion that killed one
employee on August 10, 2008. A firefighter involved in controlling the
blaze also died of a heart attack the following day, and thousands were
forced from their homes in the Downsview suburb of Toronto.
The fines were for, among other things, discharging contaminants into
the natural environment and failing to comply with a Provincial Officer's
Order. The discharge resulted from an explosion and subsequent fire
that occurred at Sunrise Propane's storage facility.
Sunrise Propane and its directors Shay Ben-Moshe and Valery Belahov
were found guilty in June 2013 of nine provincial offences related to the
deadly 2008 blast that forced thousands of people from their homes.
The court ruled that Sunrise failed to provide safety training and a safe
working environment, discharged a contaminant and contravened a
number of provincial orders related to the cleanup after the blast.
The court also found that Ben-Moshe and Belahov failed to take all
reasonable care to prevent the company from flouting those orders.
The trial heard that, according to the government, the initial blast took
place when propane vapours ignited during a risky truck-to-truck
propane transfer, which was not covered by the facility’s license.
Source: Hazardex
Huge Fine on U.S. Gas Station Operator
An Illinois County Circuit Court issued a Default Judgment Order against
TMart, Inc., a dissolved Wisconsin corporation, for $1,183,000 in civil
fines and penalties. The order came in response to the defendant’s
failure to remove abandoned underground petroleum storage tanks at a
closed gasoline station, along with other violations of the Gasoline
Storage Act.
Source: www.riverbender.com
Dead Birds Warn of Toxic Slurry Fumes
Christian Lester (17), from Scarvagh Contracts based in Co Armagh, was
mixing slurry on a customer's farm. Accompanied by another person for
safety reasons, Christian was working in a well-ventilated shed when he
noticed a lot of birds flying around.
All the livestock had been taken out, but when two birds dropped dead,
Christian knew there was a problem.
He has warned others to be on their guard when mixing slurry as the
gases can be fatal. He said: "We were mixing slurry for the customer
near Armagh. "Safety is paramount when mixing slurry because of the
carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide gases. We keep the doors and
windows of the tractor that is mixing closed at all times.
"However, we noticed a lot of birds, thought to be chaffinches, flying
around the shed. All of a sudden one dropped from the sky dead and
landed on the shed floor.
"Then we noticed another one had died and had fallen on to the floor as
well. It didn't take me long to realise it most likely was the gas that got
to the birds.
"We stayed outside for some time to let the air clear."
Source: Belfast Telegraph
British Association of Dangerous Goods Professionals
BADGP is an U.K. Association designed to support those
working professionally with dangerous goods in all modes
of transport.
www.badgp.org
AIDGC and BADGP are in discussion about sharing their Newsletters.
BADGP also administer a very active Discussion forum on LinkedIn that
AIDGC members might like to join – it is open to anyone with an interest
in the Transport of Dangerous Goods (TDG) by any mode and anywhere
in the world. It has >1250 members – including some prominent persons
in the international transport of dangerous goods.
To access ... register with Linkedin then go to the group called “British
Association of Dangerous Goods Professionals”.
An Engineer’s 3 Step Guide to Specifying
Static Grounding Solutions
This 3-Step Guide poses the primary questions that should be addressed
by engineers and QSHE professionals when tasked with implementing
measures and precautions that reduce the risk of electrostatic sparks in
Hazardous locations. Click here to download the full Guide.
Help Keep your Workers Safe around
Flammable Fluids – US Regulations
When you’re on a wellsite conducting pumping operations, the last word
you want to hear is “Fire!” That’s why hazard management is such a
huge priority
– and when you’re working with flammable fluids, minimizing the risks
can mean the difference between life and death.
One of the best way to promote safety on your work site is to follow
industry recommended practices. And one of the best ways we can help
you is to provide comprehensive, up to date resources.
Updated version of IRP #8 – pumping of flammable fluids
For anyone who plans pumping operations, or who manages, supervises
or works on a wellsite where flammable fluids are stored or pumped, our
recently updated version of DACC IRP Volume #08 – Pumping of
Flammable Fluids (2016) is an invaluable, free resource.
READ WHOLE ARTICLE
1 Killed in C. Taiwan Chemical Plant Blast
A worker was killed and another injured when a chemical plant
exploded and caught fire in a suburb of Taichung in central Taiwan.
The local fire department received a report of fire and explosion at a
pesticide plant owned by Sinon Corporation and sent 10 fire trucks and
two ambulances to the scene.
"We found two people with burns, one showing no signs of life. Both
were taken to hospital," said fire department spokesman Tseng Chintsai.
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation, but the fire
department found chemicals including methanol, xylene and butanol at
the scene.
Source: shanghaidaily.com
Download February 2016 HAZARDEX
Gaol for 14 for Mass-fatality Explosion
Stock image
On February 3, Xinhua reported that courts in east China's Jiangsu
Province had sentenced 14 people to prison terms for various offences
related to an explosion at a factory in the Kunshan area of Suzhou City
in 2014 that left 146 dead. Sentences ranged from three to seven and
half years for the crimes of causing a major labour safety accident or
dereliction of duty.
The owner and top managers of Kunshan Zhongrong Metal Products Co.
Ltd., local firefighting supervisors and officials in charge of work safety
supervision and environmental protection in Kunshan City were among
those jailed. The 14 stood trial at five different courts in Suzhou,
including Kunshan City People's Court and Zhangjiagang City People's
Court.
The blast happened on August 2, 2014, at a wheel hub polishing
workshop, killing 146 and injuring another 114. Investigators found the
explosion followed the ignition of metal dust in the workshop.
Direct economic loss reached 350 million yuan ($53.2 million), according
to a Suzhou City official quoted by Xinhua.
Scotland: Petrol Station Engulfed in Flames
Residents in Appin, Argyll, were evacuated after Gunn’s Garage petrol
station and MOT station went ablaze just before 5am in the morning.
Three fire crews battled the inferno and poured jets over acetylene
cylinders which were in the garage to stop them from blowing up.
A total of 25 people were evacuated from 16 households after a 656ft
exclusion zone was set up around the garage.
Group Manager Steph McGrath, the incident commander, said: “The
scale of the fire and the presence of acetylene cylinders made this a
challenging incident and our crews worked well to bring it to a safe
conclusion. “They fought the fire with hand-held jets and one fixed in
position on the ground. A thermal imaging camera was also used to
monitor the temperature of the cylinders throughout the firefighting
operation.” Source: The Press and Journal – WATCH VIDEO
NICNAS Announces……

For public comment - Reforms Consultation Paper 2
17 Feb 16
The second consultation paper on implementing reforms to NICNAS is open for comments
until 30 March 2016. Main and Specific Workshops in Melbourne 1 Mar 2016 and Sydney 3
Mar 2016.

NICNAS Reforms—Public submissions released
12 Feb 16
Read comments about the NICNAS Reforms Consultation Paper 1.
Gas Explosion Injures 10 in Ecuador
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Dangerous Goods
industry.
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02) 9569 2122
Sydney
P: 02 9569-2122
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BROOKLYN 3025
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P: 08 9330 9561
F: 08 9330 9561
Ten people were injured in a gas explosion in Cuenca, a city in
Ecuador's southern Andean region, fire department spokesmen told the
official Andina news agency.
Area residents were evacuated and later allowed to return home.
The explosion occurred at the GLP Austro Gas plant, which processes
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), Cuenca fire chief Oswaldo Ramirez said.
The blast happened in the plant's maintenance area, "where the (gas)
cylinders arrive, the valves are removed and the securing and control
process is completed," Ramirez said.
Source: Fox News/Latino
Massive Fire at Paint Manufacturing Unit
Valuables worth lakhs of rupees were destroyed in a massive fire which
broke out at a paint manufacturing unit in Govindpura industrial area
near New Delhi.
CSP MP Nagar Bhartendu Sharma said that the unit was used as storage
of paint drums and in the factory Oxygen cylinders were also kept which
exploded along with the drums filled with paint
Paint filled drums exploded in the fire and among the nearby commercial
establishments Fedex Courier Company and Fiat service centre were
affected but no one was injured in the fire.
In-charge officer of Fire Tender Vehicles Ifthekhar Ali said that the
factory Anand paint factory is situated at JK road and is involved in the
manufacturing paint. The unit housed a manufacturing plant of paint.
The factory was earlier involved in manufacturing paints and in the
manufacturing thinner is used which is highly inflammable and it was
found that the fire spread rapidly after thinner caught fire.
Source: The Pioneer
Toxic Leak at Power Plant in Helsinki
Toxic waste leaked out at a power plant in Helsinki, the capital of
Finland, hospitalizing five persons, local media reported.
The leak was caused by a fire caught at the Salmisaari power plant.
Five people with symptoms of severe intoxication were sent to hospital,
according to the Finnish national broadcaster Yle.
Toni Fohlin, fire chief of the Helsinki Rescue Department, told Yle that
the burning made the substance more toxic. Fohlin did not disclose
what the poisonous substance was.
He said that the fire has been extinguished, and the cleaning of the
chemicals at the scene would take several hours.
Source: Shanghai Daily
HSE: UK Dangerous Gas Release Fine
Solvay Solutions UK has been fined after a dangerous gas was released
into the atmosphere causing disruption to the M5 and thousands of
homes nearby. During the incident the police set up road closures in the
vicinity of the site; local sections of the M5 were closed by the
Highways Agency and an estimated 4,500 people were asked to stay
indoors for up to three hours.
Warley Magistrates’ Court heard how an uncontrolled release of
dangerous substances put both employees and members of the public at
risk.
The dangerous gas was phosphorus and phosphine which, upon contact
with air, spontaneously ignited to produce phosphorous pentoxide. This
reacted with the moisture in the air to produce a mist of phosphoric acid
which drifted to a densely populated area.
An investigation carried out by the UK Health and Safety Executive
(HSE) into the incident, which occurred at Trinity Street, Oldbury on 2
January 2009, found that a welded steel bar (‘rodder’) failed at the weld
and broke in two. One piece fell back and the other piece pulled clear,
leaving an opening through which the dangerous substance escaped.
Solvay Solutions UK Limited, formerly Rhodia UK Limited, was fined a
total of £333,000 and ordered to pay costs of £110,000 after pleading
guilty to an offence under Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and
Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Solvay had failed to properly assess and act upon the risk of the rodder
failing.
HSE inspector Kay Brookes, said: “This was a long and complex case,
but at the heart of it lay the fact that this company’s actions caused an
incident that affected the public and workers.
“The loss of containment and failure in Solvay’s systems caused huge
disruption and the outcomes could have been far worse.
“This case should serve as a warning to other companies dealing with
harmful substances that they need to get their processes absolutely
right, in order to ensure the safety of the public, if they don’t they will
face the consequences.”
Garbage Truck Explosion = Fiery Debris
US residents looked on in morbid fascination as a gas-powered garbage
truck exploded spectacularly, raining fiery and foul-smelling debris on a
New Jersey street.
Four houses were damaged in the blast, including one that was left with
a hole in the front.
Fire at Deccan Fine Chemicals Unit
A fire broke out in the warehouse of Deccan Fine Chemicals at
Rajavaram village in Payakaraopeta Mandal of Visakhapatnam district,
triggering panic initially and later leading to huge protests.
There were no workers in the warehouse at the time and there were no
casualties, but the smoke from burning chemicals spread to villages in
the vicinity and people developed nausea.
They fled the villages in panic and the fire department personnel
brought the fire under control after several hours. Electrical short-circuit
is suspected to be the cause of the mishap.
Tension prevailed on Monday outside the gate of the factory. The police
had to resort to a mild lathicharge to control the crowd. More than 2,000
residents from Rajavaram, Gajapathinagaram, Rajanagaram, Kesavaram
and Venkatnagaram gathered at the factory’s gate, demanding
immediate closure of the unit.
The villagers were also upset with the company, as it was the second
major fire in two years. On April 11, 2014, fire broke out at the same
plant due to a reactor blast that left two dead and about 26 injured.
Meanwhile, a delegation from the Forum for Development of North
Andhra (FDNA) led by Ajay Sharma and JV Ratnam of Green Climate,
met the officials of the Joint Inspector of Factories here and submitted
a memorandum, seeking immediate action against Deccan Fine
Chemicals and safety audit of all pharmaceutical and chemical factories
in the district.
Deccan Fine Chemicals produces chemicals such as tricyclazole,
amicarbazone and prodiamine, and it is in on an expansion mode. The
factory has been set up on 35 acres and is planning to acquire another
150 acres.
Source: The Hindu
Tanker Filled with Liquid Nitrogen Catches Fire
A9: Tanker catches fire
(file pic).© HEMEDIA /
SWNS Group
A tanker filled with liquid nitrogen has caught fire on the A9, blocking
the Highland road, Scotland. One of the tanker's wheels burst into
flames at Crubenmore.
It is unclear what caused the fire, but police said there was no risk to
the public as liquid nitrogen is not flammable.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: "A wheel on a tanker was on fire
but there was no threat. “It was extinguished by the fire service - the
driver tried to put the fire out by himself but couldn't manage. "Police
officers were directing traffic around it."
Source: STV News
ConocoPhillips Fined £3m over North Sea
Platform Gas Releases
The LOGGS complex Image: ConocoPhillips
One of the world’s largest oil and gas companies has been fined after
gas leaks on a platform off the Lincolnshire coast put workers’ lives in
danger. ConocoPhillips (UK) pleaded guilty to three breaches of the
Offshore Installations (Prevention of Fire and Explosion, and Emergency
Response) Regulations 1995 and was fined £3m - £1m for each offence and ordered to pay costs of £159,459.
ConocoPhillips earlier admitted serious safety failings in Lincoln Crown
Court after two uncontrolled and one controlled but unexpected gas
release, which occurred on the Lincolnshire Offshore Gas Gathering
System (LOGGS) between 30 November and 1 December 2012.
The LOGGS Complex is situated 70 miles off the Lincolnshire coast in
the North Sea and is made up of five interlinked platforms. As well as
having its own wells, the installation collects natural gas from other gas
platforms in the Southern North Sea and pipes it to the onshore
Theddlethorpe gas terminal.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the
releases on 30 November resulted from maintenance work to replace a
gas pressure control valve on one of three gas turbines used to generate
electricity for the installation. To do this, the fuel gas pressure safety
valve and a flexible hose had to be removed.
Releases of gas occurred as a result of a number of deficiencies in
isolation and planning, allowing gas to come out of an open ended pipe
connected to the high pressure vent system.
Breakdowns in communications across the five platforms of LOGGS also
meant some workers incorrectly believed the platform was gas-free,
putting the lives of up to 66 workers on board in danger if an ignition
occurred.
A loss of electrical power made management of the emergency more
difficult. Workers sent to investigate were put at extreme risk of death
or serious injury as ignition of the gas would’ve resulted in an explosion.
It is estimated around 603kg of produced hydrocarbon gas was released
into the Turbine Hall during this incident.
On 1 December, another gas release happened after batteries ran down.
In this case, the isolation valve was closed in time. This stopped the gas
accumulating in the turbine hall, which would have put workers at risk.
The company confirmed on 21 December that modifications to LOGGS
incident command system had been made to prevent a repeat of these
incidents.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector John Hawkins said: “There
was a failure to identify the risk posed by the high-pressure vent
systems when carrying out intrusive maintenance work.
“ConocoPhillips failed to put in place appropriate process isolations to
isolate the high-pressure vent from the worksite. “An assessment of the
full extent of the maintenance intervention work was not carried out
and the full isolations required were not identified.
“Our investigations indicate there was a deviation from following
procedures fully. The underlying cause of the incident was the
inadequate implementation, control and oversight of the permit to work
system, and the common isolation procedure.
“It is only a matter of good fortune these incidents didn’t result in a
serious, tragic incident.”
U.K. Worker gets Trapped in Gas Cloud
One of the UK’s largest national gas distributors was sentenced after a
worker became trapped in a ruptured gas main.
On 24 June 2014, National Grid Gas (Plc) were supervising repairs to a
gas mains when a worker was trapped between two gas pipes after one
of them burst, breaking his femur.
He was part of a team trying to repair a reported leak on Ashby Road,
Scunthorpe, when the pressure behind the escaping gas increased and
ruptured the pipeline.
Footage of the incident shows how the fire service had zero visibility as
they worked for an hour to rescue the trapped engineer, as the escaping
gas was creating a cloud of dust and debris around the excavation.
The fact the worker was wearing breathing apparatus undoubtedly
saved his life.
Sheffield Crown Court was told of a number of failings by National
Grid Gas (Plc) including not complying with its own gas escape
procedures, not carrying out sufficient risk assessments, not
communicating effectively with the contractors carrying out the
work and not managing the handover of key personnel.
It has been fined £1 million and ordered to pay costs of £26,296
for breaching Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act
1974.
Source: HSE
Chemical Gazette—February 2016
The Chemical Gazette is now available.

NICNAS Bulletin—February 2016
The Chemical Bulletin is now available on the NICNAS
website.

Cootes Mona Vale Crash before Sydney Court
The scene of the Mona
Vale crash. Photo: Tim
Pascoe
Fire fighters at the scene
of the Mona Vale crash
that left two people dead.
Photo: Ben Rushton
Cootes truck driver Shane
Day has appeared in court
over the crash. Photo: Ben
Rushton
A truck driver ignored a "clearly visible" road sign advising him to slow
down before his petrol tanker crashed and exploded in a fireball, killing
two people on Sydney's northern beaches, a jury has been told.
Cootes truck driver Shane Day is appearing in Sydney's Downing
Centre Court to defend multiple dangerous driving charges, after his
exploded tanker claimed the lives of two others.
On the opening day of the trial, the jury heard Mr. Day had been
transporting almost 40,000 litres of petrol to 7-Eleven franchises in
Sydney's north when his tanker clipped the curb of a roundabout on
Mona Vale Road, struck a power pole, flipped and skidded into oncoming
traffic, just after 3.30pm on October 1, 2013.
Mr. Day's barrister Grant Brady, SC, said the accident was "caused by a
mechanical defect" and it was the trucking company, Cootes Transport,
who should be blamed. "Cootes, the trucking company, sent their
employee out in their truck and their trailer that hadn't been properly
serviced," Mr. Brady said. The vehicle, a Sterling prime mover and
tanker, was an "accident waiting to happen" he said, telling the jury that
10 of the 13 brakes were faulty.
But Crown prosecutor Craig Patrick, SC, said Mr. Day had ignored a
"clearly visible" road sign as he travelled down a steep gradient about
two kilometres before the roundabout. The sign directed truck drivers to
use a low gear on the descent.
Mr. Day had "ample opportunity to put the vehicle in a low gear" but GPS
data taken from the truck showed he reached speeds over 80km/hr
while the maximum speed possible in a low gear was 25.2km/hr, he said.
Mr. Patrick said the Crown would prove this had forced Day to rely upon
the truck's brake as it sped towards the roundabout, where he lost
control. "The collision led to the eruption of the tanker causing a large
fireball and explosion," Mr. Patrick said. Mr. Wem and Mr. Holtfreter
became trapped inside their Subaru outback and were "engulfed in
flames" by the time they freed themselves. They died a short distance
from their car.
Another five people were injured, including Neil Donaldson, the driver of
a Honda CR-V who sustained serious injuries.
Mr. Day escaped from the truck and was described by a witness as
being dazed and injured after the crash, the jury heard. "Immediately
after the crash he said on a number of occasions, 'My brakes failed',"
Mr. Patrick said. He is charged with two counts of driving occasioning
death and one count of driving occasioning grievous bodily harm. In
total, five vehicles were damaged as a result of the crash, either by
swerving to miss the tanker or they were incinerated in the ensuing
fireball, the court heard. Read More in Sydney Morning Herald, Lisa Visentin
UPDATE: Truck Driver found Not Guilty
Image: smh.com.au
Image: nhvr.training
Truck driver Shane Day has been found not guilty of three charges
against him over the 2013 fuel tanker crash which killed two people in
Mona Vale, in Sydney’s north.
Mr. Day was charged with two counts of dangerous driving causing
death and another of driving causing serious injury over the crash.
Two people died when the tanker carrying nearly 34,000 litres of fuel
and driven by the Cootes Transport employee careered into cars and
burst into flames. Two people were killed in the accident.
Peter Wern and Graham Holfreter died and five other people were
injured.
The defence argued that Mr. Day’s truck was faulty and that 10 out of 12
of its brakes had failed, and blamed Cootes Transport for giving him a
vehicle which was "an accident waiting to happen".
The jury agreed and took just 90 minutes to reach its verdict.
Mr. Day was going 83km/h when he reached the round-a-bout where the
accident occurred. The Crown argued Mr. Day had been driving
dangerously because he had ignored signs advising drivers to use a low
gear on the steep descent. He reached 86km/h before hitting the rounda-bout where the accident occurred, the court heard.
Mr. Day still faces charges of not giving particulars to police and
ignoring the low gears signage, and will return to court at a later date.
© ninemsn 2016
DR SA/SNZ HB 205-2016 Managing Safety-related Risk
Open for comment until 17 Mar 2016
Download free from:
http://infostore.saiglobal.com/store/Details.aspx?ProductID=1843884
There are some particular issues associated with managing safety
related risk that should be considered when AS/NZS ISO 31000 is
applied.
This draft includes the regulatory context, specific methods and other
useful material. There is an appendix on “graphical representation of
risk” (i.e. the common “safety matrix”) which points out the strengths
and weaknesses of the method and includes a statement:
“Traditionally such matrices have been used for deciding when a risk is
acceptable. This is not compatible with WHS legislation. However they
may be useful to indicate the relative significance of residual risks once
they have been controlled so far as is reasonably practicable or to
decide which risks need to be referred to higher levels of management
for review.”
Members are urged to download and submit any comments to Standards
Australia
Gas Explosions in Dominican Republic
A police officer stands in the rubble of homes and cars destroyed by an
explosion from a nearby gas distribution center owned by Solgas in the
Los Rios neighborhood of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Tuesday,
Feb. 16, 2016. According to officials, two early morning explosions
destroyed several homes and injured at least 40 people.
Source: Ezequiel Abiu Lopez/Associated Press
Gas Leak Explosion at Iran Refinery
An Iranian oil worker
walks at Tehran's oil
refinery south of the
capital in Iran. (File: AP)
A gas leak caused an explosion at a refinery in Lavan Island in southern
Iran, the Fars news agency reported, a day before the launch of six new
projects there.
The incident caused no casualties, the agency said, but the launch of
the projects had been cancelled after the explosion.
Lavan Island has one of the major export terminals for crude oil in Iran.
“The incident happened due to a gas leak in a new petroleum refining
unit that was supposed to be launched tomorrow,” Iran’s deputy oil
minister, Abbas Kazemi was quoted as saying by the state news agency
IRNA.
The oil ministry’s news agency, SHANA, reported that compressor
failure at the refinery was to blame for the explosion, and that it would
be fixed in next 10 days.
The agency said the explosion had only affected a small part of the
refinery and the rest was operational.
Kazemi was quoted by Mehr News Agency as saying on Saturday that
Lavan Refinery was being upgraded in order to reach a total gasoline
output of 2 to 2.2 million litres which meet meets euro-4 standard
obligations.
The upgrade of the Lavan refinery was supposed to finish in 2011 but
projects were delayed due to international sanctions imposed on Iran
because of its nuclear programme.
The Underestimated Explosion Hazards of
Solid Biofuels
The growing trend of converting existing coal-fired plants to more
environmentally-friendly fuels such as biomass requires operators to
take a careful look at any potential increased risk of explosion and
other potential safety issues. In this article, Johannes Lottermann and
Francesca Vincenzi of Rembe GmbH Safety & Control analyse dust
explosion risk in biomass plants and propose mitigation solutions.
READ ARTICLE
LPG Tanker Inferno in Pakistan
At least ten people died and more than 20 were injured when a tanker
carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) crashed into a car and the gas
leakage fuelled an inferno engulfing the vehicle and nearby buildings
near Sheikhupura, Dunya News reported.
According to eyewitnesses, the accident occurred when the driver of
the tanker lost control while overtaking a vehicle near a u-turn.
Deadly accidents are common on roads across Pakistan due to bad road
infrastructure and rampant disregard of traffic laws.
Over 9,000 road accidents are reported to the police every year, killing
on average around 5,000 people, according to the Pakistan Bureau of
Statistics.
Probe Ordered Into Paradip Refinery Fire
The Centre ordered a high-level probe into the fire at IOCL's refinery.
Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the Oil Industry
Safety Directorate (OISD) has been asked to inquire into the fire incident
that took place at the refinery's Atmospheric Vacuum Unit (AVU)
yesterday evening and give its report in three days.
Maintaining that the fire at the refinery's AVU near gate number 1 has
been completely extinguished, Pradhan, who visited the site today, said
the exact reason behind the incident could be ascertained only after
getting a detailed report from OISD.
No injury has been reported due to the fire, which caused minor damage
to the outlet pumping section of AVU, he said, adding the refinery is well
equipped to handle such mishaps.
After the fire broke out, at least seven fire tenders were deployed to
douse the flames at the newly constructed AVU, a part of the crude oil
processing unit, police said. Executive Director of IOCL's Paradip
Refinery Ramjee Ram said the loss due to the blaze can be ascertained
only after thorough assessment.
The nearby units, which had been shut down after the fire broke out,
were now being restarted as the flames have been completely put out,
officials said.
Source: The Indian Express
Chemicals near Electrical Transformer
Picture: Stewart Allen.
THE police bomb squad has determined hazardous material found in
Sorrento is not explosive. The chemicals, reportedly in bottles in a
backpack, were found near a Western Power electrical transformer near
Ashmore Way and Lesueur.
The bomb squad used a robot to take samples of the substance and
have since ruled out the chemicals being explosive. Police said the
chemical appeared to be in a state of corrosion and inquiries were being
made to find out whether the substance may be connected to illicit drug
manufacturing.
Western Power confirmed they were contacted by police to shut off the
transformer while investigations took place. About 140 houses lost
power.
A protected forensic area was established and streets are still cordoned
off while the police bomb squad and the Department of Fire and
Emergency finish their investigations.
Source: Elisia Seeber, Perth Now
NTSB Wants PHMSA to Act on Batteries and Flammables
The US National Transportation Safety Board has issued two
recommendations to PHMSA on cargo segregation and loading density
requirements for air cargo operations. The recommendations stem from
NTSB’s part in the investigation of the in-flight fire aboard Asiana Airlines
Flight 991 and its crash into the sea west of Jeju International Airport,
South Korea in July 2011.
NTSB is asking PHMSA to put in place rules to ensure the physical
separation of lithium batteries from other flammable hazardous materials
stowed on cargo aircraft and to establish maximum loading density
requirements that restrict the quantities of lithium batteries and
flammable hazardous materials.
“NTSB urges PHMSA to take action on these safety recommendations to
reduce the likelihood and severity of potential cargo fires and to provide
additional time for the crew to safely land a cargo aircraft in the event a
fire is detected,” says Christopher A Hart, NTSB chairman.
NTSB is aware that PHMSA will not generally put in place rules that are
more restrictive than international regulations; however, Congress has
given PHMSA authority to do so if it finds credible evidence of a deficiency
in the international regulations that has substantially contributed to the
start or spread of an on-board fire. The NTSB strongly believes the
circumstances and findings in the Asiana Flight 991 accident show the
need for new cargo segregation and loading density requirements.
The NTSB report and recommendations can be found on the Board’s
website.
Overheated Nitrocellulose Ignited to set off Tianjin Explosion
A warehouse explosion that killed 175 people and left hundreds more injured in
the Chinese city of Tianjin in August was caused when improperly stored
chemicals self-ignited in the summer heat, according to the results of a
government investigation released Friday night. The investigation found that
containers of the flammable industrial compound nitrocellulose stored in the
warehouse had been allowed to get too dry and caught fire Aug. 12, eventually
igniting nearby stores of ammonium nitrate, said a summary published by state
media. Source: wsj.com
China Finds 123 People Responsible for
Fatal Tianjin Explosions
Image Credit: Sina Weibo/
@张明明Love
An investigation by China’s State Council found 123 people responsible
for the explosions that rocked Tianjin last August, Xinhua reported
today. The August 12 explosions, which occurred at a chemical
warehouse operated by Tianjin Ruihai International Logistics Co. Ltd.,
left 165 dead and hundreds more injured.
Reporting in the immediate aftermath pointed to lax enforcement of
public safety regulations, as well as shady dealings by Ruihai and local
officials to circumvent the law. In response, China’s central government
promised a full investigation, and pledged to focus on correct
enforcement of safety regulations throughout the country.
Premier Li Keqiang was briefed on the investigation’s preliminary
findings back in September. The preliminary report found “irregularities
and illegal operations by the companies involved, and acts of corruption
and dereliction of duty on the part of relevant departments.” Li himself
promised that the people responsible would be “held accountable and
punished in accordance with law and discipline.” At the time, the
government had already begun investigations into 23 people, from
executives at Ruihai Logistics to government officials.
The State Council’s report, however, casts its net much wider,
identifying 123 people as responsible for the Tianjin explosions. Of
those, the investigation team recommended 74 people undergo Party
discipline, with another 48 to be “admonished” by their local Party
apparatus (the 123rd person apparently passed away during the
investigation). Party members are subject to criminal investigation as
well, once Party discipline takes it course.
The report also set the cost of the explosions, with “verified, direct
economic losses,” at a total of 6.87 billion renminbi (just over $1 billion).
That includes damage to “304 buildings, 12,428 cars and 7,533
containers,” according to Xinhua. The extent of the damage led the
State Council to label the explosions “an extraordinarily serious”
accident.
Unsurprisingly, Ruihai Logistics, the company that owned the
warehouse, bore the brunt of the responsibility. The State Council report
said that Ruihai Logistics “illegally built a freight yard of hazardous
materials, conducted illegal operations, illegally stored hazardous
material, and had been running inept safety management.” That
conclusion fits with earlier reports from Chinese state media outlets,
which accused Ruihai executives of having used political connections
to get around safety inspections and other regulations.
The report recommends that Ruihai Logistics have its licenses revoked,
and that executives who worked for the company be banned from taking
up other high-ranking posts in the industry.
Yet in the six months it took to investigate the Tianjin case, another
fatal industrial accident shocked the nation: a deadly landslide in
Shenzhen, caused by the collapse of an illegal construction waste
dump. The December 2015 incident, which killed 69, has sparked the
same response of investigations, prosecutions, and promises to upgrade
safety; by mid-January, a dozen government officials and 16 business
people had been charged in the Shenzhen case.
The question now is whether China can make the transition from
punishment to prevention of such accidents, both of which were
strongly tied to corruption and lax regulations.
Source: The Diplomat, Shannon Tiezzi
Explosion at Spanish Biodiesel Plant
An explosion at a biodiesel plant has killed two workers and left one
survivor seriously injured, according to Spanish emergency services. The
Emergency Coordination and Information Centre for the regional
government of Valencia said the explosion occurred at around 11 a.m.
Saturday at a fuel production plant in Algemesi, 33 kilometers (21 miles)
south of the port city of Valencia. Social media showed plumes of black
smoke emerging from the Biocom Energia plant. Josep Vicent Bort,
spokesman for Valencia's regional firefighting services, said the blaze
that followed the explosion had been brought under control and the
bodies of two men who had been due to do some welding work at the
plant had been removed. The service said police had begun an
investigation into the cause of the blast. Calls to the company's phone
number were not immediately returned.
Source: ABC News
W.A. Inspection Program Looks at Safety in
Waste and Recycling Industry
WorkSafe is conducting an inspection program to look at safety
standards and issues in the waste and recycling industry.
The program will continue through the financial year, and will be
conducted in both metropolitan and regional areas of the State.
WorkSafe Director Joe Attard said today the sector was being targeted
because of its wide range of hazards that could result in serious
injuries.
Further information and the checklist for this program can be obtained
on WorkSafe’s website at www.worksafe.wa.gov.au or by telephoning
WorkSafe on 1300 307877.
U.S. Proposed Ban on Flame Retardants
A petition, calling on the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC)
to ban organohalogenated flame retardants in several consumer product
categories, has raised concern from industry groups over the approach
of prohibiting a full class of chemicals.
A coalition of close to twenty trade groups – including bodies
representing the automotive, textile, electronics and toys sectors – has
called on the CPSC to deny the petition. This is on the grounds that it is
“overly broad, unnecessary, and would impose unknown and
unprecedented regulatory obligations on industry, with no defined
benefits for consumers.”
The petition, submitted by several NGOs last year, asks the CPSC to
promulgate a regulation under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act
(FHSA). This would name products, containing any non-polymeric,
additive organohalogen flame retardant, as “banned hazardous
substances” for the following product categories:
 children's products, toys, and childcare articles (excluding child
car seats);
 upholstered residential furniture;
 mattresses and mattress pads; and
 electronic devices with external casings containing the
substances.
READ FULL ARTICLE
Process Safety Beacon - February 2016
Still Overflowing Tanks!
Fire at Tüpraş Refinery in N.W. Turkey
A fire broke out at Turkish
oil refiner Tüpraş' refinery
in the northwestern
province of Kocaeli on
Wednesday. (Photo: DHA)
A blaze erupted at the Turkish Petroleum Refineries Corporation
(Tüpraş) refinery in the northwestern province of Kocaeli, leading to a
large number of firefighters being dispatched to the area.
In a written statement from Tüpraş, it was said that a fire broke out at
Tüpraş's refinery in the town of İzmit due to a failure of technical
equipment. “Our technical team has been intervening in the incident in a
controlled way,” Tüpraş said.
The Doğan news agency reported that the workers in the refinery and
residents in nearby apartments were evacuated following the fire.
The refinery can process around 11 million tonnes of crude oil per year
and has a storage capacity of 2.91 million cubic meters. İzmit Bay is
also a key shipping hub for Turkey's crude imports. The sole Turkish
refiner Tüpraş, owned by Turkey's largest conglomerate Koç Holding,
has a total of four refineries across Turkey with over 28 million tonnes
of crude processing capacity.
Source: Today’s Zaman
AMSA & MSQ: Free Queensland Safety
Workshops for Commercial Fishing Vessels
The Workshops are designed to help operators identify and manage
safety risks and develop a safety management system compliant with
new regulatory changes. GOTO
Netherlands Shell Plant Leaks Toxic Gas
Some 25 tons of the toxic gas ethylene oxide leaked into the
atmosphere from the Shell installation in Moerdijk, the oil giant
discovered last week.
According to the company, there is no danger to public health, Omroep
Brabant reports. The leak was caused by a valve that wasn’t closed
after repair work on November 21st last year.
About 380 kilograms of the gas leaked out each day over two months.
Ethylene oxide is produced at Shell and is used in numerous products,
including as raw material for detergents and shampoo. According to the
fire department, the gas is flammable, toxic and carcinogenic. Shell also
acknowledged this in a statement released on Wednesday. But because
the gas escaped from a vale at a height of 25 meters and because the
gas thins quickly in the air, there is no danger at ground level, according
to the company. This is also why it took two months to discover the
leak. There will be an external investigation to determine the exact
extent of the leak.
Source: http://www.nltimes.nl/2016/02/04/51873/
Fire Destroys Two Oil Tankers at Terminal
Four people fell unconscious after a major fire broke out in a petrol
tanker in the Keamari terminal, situated in the Docks police area.
According to an official of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT), the fire erupted
in an oil tanker while the tanker was being filled.
Within a few minutes, it spread to another tanker and four employees
working at the terminal fell unconscious due to suffocation; they were
taken to the Civil Hospital for treatment.
Six fire engines of the KPT managed to extinguish the blaze after two
hours.
A spokesperson for the terminal, operated by Pakistan State Oil, said
the fire actually erupted in two vehicles and it was controlled before it
could spread to other places.
Source: International The News
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) pose a particular hazard, because
they are both combustible and, even at very low levels, toxic. There are
numerous different technologies used for monitoring and detecting
VOCs in the working environment but, for personal detectors, the choice
narrows to just two: pellistors or photo-ionisation detection (PID). To
learn more, download the white paper.
Source: CROWCON
New Jersey Employer Fined $70K for
'hazardous' working conditions
Elan Chemical Co.'s
facility on in Newark.
(Google Maps)
A New Jersey chemical manufacturer has been fined more than $70,000
for what federal authorities are calling “serious safety violations."
Investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
issued 17 citations after a visit to Elan Chemical Company's
headquarters.
Among the hazards they found were deficiencies in its equipment
process safety information, written operating procedures, contractor
safety and its inspection and testing of equipment.
Kris Hoffman, director of OSHA's Parsippany Area Office, said in a
statement that Elan's haphazard use of ethyl chloride, a highly
flammable liquefied gas, creates "a hazardous environment" for
workers.
"The company's failure to comply with OSHA's Process Safety
Management standard could result in a chemical release, as well as a
serious fire or explosion," she said.
Source: www.nj.com
Hungary: All Acquitted over Toxic Spill
The catastrophe unfolded on October 4, when the plant's reservoir cracked
open after weeks of heavy rain, releasing 1.1 million cubic metres (38.8 million
cubic feet) of poisonous, red sludge.
The mud -- a caustic byproduct of aluminium extraction -- rushed into the
nearby villages of Kolontar, Devecser and Somlovasarhely.
Flows of two metres (over six feet) toppled cars and submerged entire homes,
leaving hundreds without homes or livelihood. Many of the survivors suffered
horrendous chemical burns.
The sludge also wiped out almost all life in nearby rivers and even spread to
the Danube.
In total, the devastation spread across an area of 40 square kilometres (over 15
square miles).
Images: AFP
Victims of Hungary's worst ever toxic spill, which killed 10 people and
injured 150 in 2010, voiced outrage after the boss of the alumina plant
that caused the disaster was cleared of any wrongdoing.
Zoltan Bakonyi, the former director of the MAL alumina plant in Ajka,
and 14 employees were acquitted of charges of negligence, waste
management violations and damages to the environment.
The public prosecutor's office said it would appeal the verdict.
Prosecutors had earlier demanded prison sentences for all those on trial
over the disaster, which had sent toxic sludge cascading into villages in
western Hungary after the plant's holding reservoir burst its walls on
October 4, 2010.
But the court said the employees -- which also included several senior
managers -- could not be held criminally responsible because the
disaster had ostensibly been caused by a "loss of stability in the
undersoil".
The judgment sparked strong reactions in the packed courtroom in the
city of Veszprem, with one man shouting "Outrageous verdict! We will
protest!" before being escorted out by a security guard.
For environmental group Greenpeace, this ruling does little to help bring
closure. "We are not necessarily saying that all 15 were guilty but we
very disappointed that more than five years after the disaster there is
still no one held responsible," spokesman Gergely Simon told AFP.
"If you look at the scientific and technical evidence, we believe it is
clear that the disaster was not a natural disaster but was due to human
error," he said.
"Satellite images show that the walls of the dam were moving, and
nobody checked the stability of the dam however between 2000 and
2010."
Chemical, Noise, and Other Hazards
Georgia Company identified as ‘Severe Violator’
OSHA began a programmed-targeted inspection of Rich Products Corp.,
located in Brownsville, Texas under the agency’s Process Safety
Management Covered Chemical Facilities National Emphasis Program to
reduce or eliminate the release of highly hazardous chemicals. Following
the inspection of the plant’s anhydrous ammonia refrigeration system,
OSHA issued citations for 11 serious and three repeat violations and also
placed the company in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
Proposed Penalties total $155,000.
Some of the 11 serious violations cited include failing to:
 Provide written notice of annual audiograms.
 Refit workers for hearing protection and training.
 Test ammonia detectors, and implement an emergency response
plan for potential release of anhydrous ammonia.
 Provide an annual fit test for respirator use.
 Provide a medical evaluation to determine employee’s ability to use
a respirator.
The repeat violations, all relating to the PSM, include failing to:
 Include a relief design system for the process safety information to
maintain adequate pressure.
 Provide accurate calculations for the ventilation system design.
 Provide adequate procedures for draining oil pot vessels.
“Process safety management is necessary for preventing or minimizing
the consequences of an unexpected release of toxic, reactive,
flammable, or explosive chemicals in the workplace. This includes liquids
and gases in processes involving highly hazardous chemicals such as
ammonia,” said Travis Clark, OSHA’s area director in Corpus Christi. It’s
vital that Rich Products ensure safeguards are in place to protect worker
safety and health at this facility.”
Headquartered in St. Simons Island, Georgia, Rich Products is a
manufacturer and distributor of frozen seafood products.
Link to the citations: http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/Rich_Products_Corp_1081533.pdf*
Restaurant Oven Explosion
Fire officials say an explosion at a Massachusetts restaurant has left an
employee severely burned. Crews responded to the Uno Pizzeria & Grill
restaurant at the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets.
Authorities say an aerosol spray can blew up after it fell onto the
conveyor belt of the restaurant's pizza oven. The explosion blew out the
doors of the oven.
Source: WCVB5
OSHA Investigates Feed Mill Explosion
A small community an hour northwest of Atlanta was rocked by a plant
explosion that left one family in mourning, several others hoping for
recovery, and a workforce waiting for information.
The explosion happened during an overnight shift at the JCG Feed Mill.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was at the
plant Monday. They also investigated an explosion at the plant in 2013.
Eight people were inside the structure when the explosion happened.
Most of them were young men. Chief Queen said the job can be
physically taxing. "Basically, they bring grain products in, they grind it
into poultry feed they ship it out to poultry plants to feed the chickens,"
he said.
JCG Foods LLC bought the Rockdale factory out of bankruptcy from
Cagle's Inc. for $93 million in 2012. An expansion the following year
pushed the number of employees working at the plant to 1,400. Official
records show JCG Farms registered in Alabama as a "hatchery and feed
mill" business.
OSHA and ATF investigators are working to determine what caused the
deadly plant explosion.
Source: Valerie Hoff, 11Alive News
Tamworth Freight Company DG Breach
The EPA has fined the Tamworth based Cary’s Freightlines Pty Ltd
$10,000 for failing to transport dangerous goods safely, as a result of an
incident on the New England Highway in September 2015.
Following a call from a member of the public on 1 September, EPA
officers attended a road side site at Rix’s Creek, on the New England
Highway. There it was discovered that a pallet containing four partly
empty 200 litre drums of sulphuric acid had shifted inside a shipping
container, resulting in one drum being damaged and starting to leak.
EPA officers worked with NSW Fire & Rescue and NSW Roads and
Maritime Services to contain and stop the leak inside the shipping
container. There were no impacts on the surrounding environment.
Further investigation confirmed that Cary’s Freightlines was responsible
for loading the drums of sulphuric acid - 5,400 litres in total - at its depot
in Wetherill Park.
Source: NSW EPA
LA Fire Department Fights Commercial Fire with Propane
Cylinders Involved
LAFD says combustible storage, propane cylinders fueled the fire.
Insurance Payout for Fuel Fire Clean up
When flames and explosions rocked the Viesel Fuel plant in Stuart,
Florida on April 1, 2015, Martin County Fire Rescue fought the blaze for
hours, roads were closed and nearby businesses were evacuated.
The plant converted used vegetable oil into diesel fuel. Now, Martin
County has just gotten a check for $1 million from its insurance
company--the maximum it could collect under a cap on its policy--to
cover the $1.2 million Martin County spent on fire-rescue, and
environmental clean-up. SOURCE AND FULL STORY
Firefighters with County Fire Rescue battle a fire at a biodiesel
company
Balloon Filled with Fireworks Explodes
A hot air balloon filled with fireworks has exploded above the heads of
Brazilian revellers, raining balls of fire down to earth.
The footage posted earlier this month shows a group of people know as
baloeiros preparing to launch a paper balloon filled with fireworks into
the sky.
Cheering, the group watch as the balloon begins to rise into air.
Those cheers quickly turn to screams however as the pyrotechnics onboard the balloon fire prematurely and hundreds of flaming missiles
hurtle down onto the crowd, who frantically scramble for cover.
The launching of giant paper balloons is a centuries old tradition in
Brazil that was deemed illegal in 1998 due public safety concerns and
the increased risk of forest fires.
However many groups continue to flout government restrictions and
launch the balloons on a regular basis.
Source: ninemsn
WATCH FOOTAGE
WATCH BALLOON ASCENT AND STAMPEDE
Italy: 5 Killed in Suspected Gas Explosion
Photo: cp24.com
At least five people have been killed as the result of an explosion in
north western Italy.
The blast, believed to have been caused by a gas leak, flattened a twostorey building and damaged several others in the town of Arnasco.
One woman is being treated in hospital for serious injuries, according to
the fire service.
Source: Reuters
Massive Porter Ranch Gas Leak Plugged
The researchers have
developed the Valley's
first comprehensive map
of methane exposure.
Photo credit: HEET
January 07 2016 Natural
gas leak in Porter Ranch
declared state of
emergency Photo:
www.scpr.org
Months of chaos, fear, and the smell of rotten eggs came to an end at
Porter Ranch in Los Angeles this month, once crews digging a relief well
finally pierced the deep, underground casing of the damaged Aliso
Canyon gas well and injected it with a mud-like compound.
"The well is no longer leaking," Jimmie Cho, senior vice president of gas
operations and system integrity for Southern California Gas Co,
reassured the community through the LA Times.
Once concrete is pumped into the well, which could begin on Friday,
state officials will finally declare that the leak is over. And thousands of
dislocated residents will gradually start to return to their homes and
resume their normal lives.
The leaking well, one of 115 gas wells at the Aliso Canyon facility, has
opened a very contentious debate over the safety of the storage field,
one of the nation's largest with a capacity of 86 billion cubic feet.
So this was a creepy time to report that many of the wells are corroded
and mechanically damaged, according to the gas company. (See
the SoCal Gas website and press release.)
READ FULL STORY
AERIAL FOOTAGE OF GAS LEAK
OSHA Cites Chemical Manufacturer
…… for 15 serious violations of workplace safety standards. Inspectors
found that a manufacturer of swimming pool chemicals and acetone
preparations used in nail polish exposed employees to chemical, fire
and exit access hazards. The company’s manufacturing processes use
large amounts of the flammable chemicals acetone and isopropyl
alcohol 99 percent. OSHA standards require a workplace to have a
program for safely managing processes involving large amounts of these
chemicals. The plant lacked a process safety management program.
Deficiencies included:
 Not conducting a hazard analysis.
 Having no written operating procedures for each step of the
process.
 Not compiling information about process equipment.
 Not inspecting and testing process equipment.
 Not documenting employee training
 Lacking an emergency action program.
Additional chemical and fire hazards involved a locked emergency exit
gate, an exit route through a hazardous area, rusted exit stairs, lack of
overflow protection for storage tanks, deficient vent piping and not
documenting that storage tanks had been strength tested.
CLICK HERE FOR THE CITATIONS
Chemical Burns after Tank Bursts
Photo: The Safety Culture
Library
Victoria's work safety watchdog is investigating the rupture of a 1000litre chemical tank that burst and sprayed burning acid on two factory
workers in Melbourne's west.
One employee, a 30-year-old man, was covered in acrylic acid on his
face, neck, chest and arms during the industrial accident on Tuesday
morning. "Thankfully he was wearing protective eyewear," an
ambulance spokesman said. "He cooled and rinsed the burns under
water and has been taken to The Alfred hospital."
A second worker received minor acid burns to his hands and was
treated at the scene.
WorkSafe Victoria said investigators had attended the chemical factory
at Law Court, Sunshine West, and had begun making inquiries into the
cause.
Dozens of emergency services personnel, including firefighters and
paramedics, raced to the Law Court premises after reports the acrylic
acid tank had ruptured.
Firefighters wearing chemical-splash suits were continued dousing the
spilled acid with soda ash to neutralise it. "The residue will later be
swept up into recovery drums," MFB Commander Phil Taylor said.
"The labour-intensive work has been ongoing since shortly after 8am
and is likely to continue for several more hours."
Source: The Age, Nick Toscano and Marissa Calligeros
Seven Killed in Russian Gas Blast
A powerful gas explosion that destroyed an apartment block in Russia
has left at least seven people dead including two children.
Other people were feared trapped in the rubble after the blast ripped
through the five-storey block in the city of Yaroslavl, about 250
kilometres north of Moscow.
It’s thought that up to 20 people may have been in the building at the
time.
“Our windows started to shake. The alarms on the cars went off. I didn’t
hear anything else, but it was terrifying,” said a woman who lives in a
neighbouring block.
Rescue workers pulled at least four people alive out from the debris. Up
to ten flats were reportedly destroyed.
Gas explosions in old residential buildings in Russia are commonplace:
last year there were 15 blasts, while 2014 saw 18 incidents.
Source: EURONEWS
WATCH RECOVERY VIDEO
Ammonia leak at U.S.A. Plant
Workers unclogged a backed-up line and stopped an ammonia leak at
the PCS Nitrogen complex in Ascension Parish that forced the closure of
a state highway for nearly eight hours, state officials said.
Once the blockage was cleared, pressure in the line, which is tied to an
ammonia storage tank, was reduced and a pressure relief valve closed,
halting the flow of the noxious gas to the atmosphere, state
environmental and police officials said.
Garry Hiebert, human resources manager for PCS Nitrogen, said there
were no injuries on- or off-site. He said company engineers are trying to
calculate how much ammonia escaped and are investigating the root
cause of the leak.
Hiebert said workers spotted the leak from the storage tank in the
plant’s ammonia production unit and notified authorities.
He said company officials worked with State Police to close La. 3115
when the wind began shifting toward the highway and used the plant’s
water suppression system to reduce the amount of ammonia gas
escaping.
Ammonia, which has a pungent odor even at low concentrations,
immediately burns the nose, throat and respiratory tract at higher
concentrations.
Even at low concentrations, ammonia, one of the most widely produced
industrial chemicals that is commonly used in the fertilizer industry, can
cause coughing and irritate the nose and throat.
The PCS Nitrogen Fertilizer LP plant is a subsidiary of Potash Corp., a
Canadian-based company that claims to be the world’s largest fertilizer
company by capacity.
The company, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, mines large deposits
of potash across Canada but also produces ammonia and phosphate. All
three are used in agricultural production.
The Geismar plant, which is one of Potash’s four nitrogen complexes
worldwide, produces 500,000 tons of ammonia per year in addition to
urea, nitrogen solutions, nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, the company
website says.
PCS Nitrogen opened its once-shuttered ammonia unit in Geismar in
2011 to take advantage of low natural gas prices from the U.S. shale
gas boom. The company sunk $158 million to restart the unit, which had
been closed since 2003 due to previously high natural gas prices.
Source: The Advocate
Diesel Tank Fire Caused by Welding Sparks
ATF Investigates Explosion at Flares Plant
Image: wreg.com
ATF agents are investigating an explosion at the Chemring Kilgore
Flares plant in Toone, Tennessee.
This plant has a history of explosions. At least nine people have died at
the facility in the last three decades. In 2014, a worker was burned over
90% of his body.
This is a dangerous job. The plant makes flares and munition for the U.S.
military. Employees often mix materials like magnesium and Teflon.
Local 24 spoke to residents who say they felt the explosion from miles
away. "It was just real loud and shook the trailer. I knew it was Kilgore,"
said Mary Elder.
"It's always scary. I lived on Keller Street the last time there was an
explosion over there, and there was helicopters and everything. The
kids were at home with me, and I was glad ‘cause I was worried about
them going to school. I was worried when I was going to school there,"
said Crystal Elder.
There is also some concern about the school being so close to this
plant. Kilgore has been fined in the past for violations like not properly
cleaning the site.
Source: LocalMemphis.com
Don’t Mix Chemicals to Unclog Drains
Source: OC Register
In hopes of unclogging a stubborn sink, a homeowner mixed Liquid
Plumber with sulfuric acid, creating an “extremely toxic” chemical cloud
that stunk up the neighborhood with a dangerous chlorine smell,
officials said.
“Right away, the chemicals made a violent reaction,” Concialdi said.
The man in his 50s quickly ran out of the home, where he was alone, to
the cold outdoors after he was hit in the face with a powerful and toxic
smell.
“When he mixed the Liquid Plumber and sulphuric acid, it immediately
created a chlorine cloud that was extremely toxic,” Concialdi said.
Authorities said the chlorine odor could be smelt across the
neighborhood.
OCFA responded to a similar incident on Dec. 29 when a woman in the
3500 block of Washington Avenue was trying to unclog a shower drain
after her landlord told her to mix sulphuric acid and Drano.
A similar cloud formed in the woman’s face, making it difficult to
breathe and burning her eyes and throat. She was hospitalized with
minor injuries and later returned home after OCFA aired out the area.
Source: Hazmat Nation
NFPA 652, Standard on the Fundamentals of
Combustible Dust, 2016 Edition
In case you missed it, NFPA published their new COM DUST standard
last month. This FIRST edition of NFPA 652, Standard on Combustible
Dusts (link to free access), was issued by the Standards Council on
August 18, 2015, with an effective date of September 7, 2015. NFPA
652, Standard on the Fundamentals of Combustible Dust, provides the
general requirements for management of combustible dust fire and
explosion hazards and directs the user to NFPA’s industry- or
commodity-specific standards, as appropriate:
 NFPA 61, Standard for the Prevention of Fires and Dust Explosions
in Agricultural and Food Processing Facilities;
 NFPA 484, Standard for Combustible Metals;
 NFPA 654, Standard for the Prevention of Fire and Dust Explosions
from the Manufacturing, Processing, and Handling of Combustible
Particulate Solids;
 NFPA 655, Standard for Prevention of Sulfur Fires and Explosions;
and
 NFPA 664, Standard for the Prevention of Fires and Explosions in
Wood Processing and Woodworking Facilities.
This new standard establishes the relationship and hierarchy between it
and any of the industry- or commodity-specific standards, ensuring that
fundamental requirements are addressed consistently across industries,
processes, and dust types. CLICK HERE for FREE access to NFPA 652
Caltex Will Pay for Clean Up of Oil Spill
A spokesman for Caltex said the fuel tanker was enroute to Boyne
Island to deliver fuel when the tanker crashed, spilling fuel onto the
road and into nearby drains which flowed through to a dry creek bed.
It is understood the truck was carrying just over 30,000 litres of fuel of
which close to 10,000 litres was spilt.
This estimate was based on how much Caltex operators were able to
transfer out of the remaining tanks, which was about 20,000 litres.
Although the spokesman for Caltex could not provide an exact figure for
the cost of the clean-up, he said Caltex would foot the bill.
"It's our responsibility," he said.
At this stage the spokesman said its two main concerns were about the
health of the driver, and the impact on the environment as a result of
the spill. Caltex will carry out an investigation to determine the cause of
the crash. Source: The Observer
EMERGENCY SERVICES CLEAN UP SPILL
HSE: Gas leak could have Caused Major
Explosion on ConocoPhillips Offshore Rig
LOGGS platforms - Image:
ConocoPhillips
The UK Health & Safety Executive (HSE) alleges that the lives of 66
workers were put at risk on ConocoPhillips’ Lincolnshire Offshore Gas
Gathering System (LOGGS) platforms 70 miles off Mablethorpe in the
North Sea in November 2012.
In a case at Lincoln Crown Court, the HSE prosecutor said the major gas
leak on the platform could have caused a major explosion or
asphyxiated workers on the rigs.
LOGGS gathers gas from a large number of fields in the Southern North
Sea and transports it to the Theddlethorpe Gas Processing Plant in
Lincolnshire.
The gas releases occurred after a valve was removed for repairs on the
platform and a second valve was not closed off. The leak affected the
turbine hall which provided power to the entire installation.
A total of 38 non-essential workers were taken off by helicopter, while
the remaining 28 dealt with the leak.
Eventually the problem was identified and a worker shut the open valve
several hours after the first gas was released. The HSE said there had
been two earlier, less serious, releases of gas before the major incident.
The judge adjourned sentence to a later date.
Source: HazardEx
N.Z. Tour Boat Explosion and Fire
Stock image
Some 53 passengers and seven crew were rescued from a charter
vessel off New Zealand’s North Island after the boat’s engine exploded
and caught fire. The 23-metre PeeJay V had been cruising to White
Island volcano, 20 miles off shore in the Bay of Plenty, when the
accident happened less than a mile from port.
Some jumped into rubber lifeboats while others leapt straight into the
water as the flames took hold.
Four people were treated in hospital at Whakatane, but it is understood
that none was seriously hurt.
The owners of the PeeJay V, Peter and Jenny Tait, said they were now
helping with the investigations into the cause of the blaze. "We're
extremely upset this has occurred and we are trying to come to terms
with it. But we're extremely proud of our crew and staff for their efforts - and thankful to the emergency responders who assisted in the rescue
operation."
Source: New Zealand Herald
WATCH VIDEO
Incorrect way of loading LPG cylinders: Video of the Year
Final Report on West Fertilizer Explosion
More than 1,300
facilities nationwide
store the type of
agricultural
chemical—fertilizergrade ammonium
nitrate—that set off
an explosion in the
central Texas town
of West on April 17,
2013 at a fertilizer
production plant.
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board has released
its final report regarding the West fertilizer explosion citing gaps in safety
practices, regulations and training. The 2013 explosion claimed 15 lives,
injured hundreds of people and caused extensive damage to homes,
schools and other structures.
WFC filed for bankruptcy after the explosion.
“The WFC explosion is one of the most destructive incidents ever
investigated by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation,”
according to the report. The CSB states that combustibles being stored
near the fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate fueled the fire and likely
resulted in the detonation.
In addition, the report findings claim emergency responders did not have
enough training to make an informed decision on how to best respond to
the fire at the fertilizer plant. According to CSB, lessons from previous
fertilizer fires elsewhere were not shared with volunteer fire
departments, such as West. In addition, firefighters didn't do pre-incident
planning or response training to fertilizer related incidents because there
was no such regulatory requirement. Insurance findings listed in the
report mention, the insurer did not renew the West Fertilizer Company
commercial property policy in 2010 because the company didn’t comply
with the insurer’s safety recommendations. In terms of regulatory
findings, the CSB states the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration omitted ammonium nitrate from the list of highly
hazardous materials, toxics and reactives. The board concludes there is
still a risk to the public in Texas from a catastrophic incident. For
instance, 19 facilities storing fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate are within
0.5 miles of a school, hospital or nursing home, according to the report.
Law enforcement has not determined the cause of the fire that prompted
the explosion. Source: USCSB
Final Report from Chemical Safety Board on West Fertilizer Explosion
The CSB’s newly released 12-minute safety video entitled,
“Dangerously Close: Explosion in West, Texas,” includes a 3D
animation of the fire and explosion as well as interviews with CSB
investigators and Chairperson Vanessa Allen Sutherland.
The video can be viewed on the CSB’s website and YouTube.
Download the CSB's West Fertilizer Company Animation
Click here to download document
Prestige Oil Spill – Captain & Insurer Liable
Spain's Supreme Court has found the captain, British insurer and owner
of an oil tanker that broke up off northwestern Spain in 2002 liable for
one of Europe's worst environmental disasters. Reversing an earlier
decision acquitting the ship's Greek captain Apostolos Mangouras, the
court sentenced the skipper to two years' jail and also found mutual
insurance company The London P&I Club liable for the disaster, as well
as ship owner Mare Shipping Inc. The total cost of the damage has been
estimated at 4.1 billion euros ($4.4 billion) and by designating those
liable for the disaster for the first time, Spain's top court finally opens
the way for compensation more than 13 years after the spill.
READ FULL STORY
Watch a Tanker Completely Implode in Slow Motion
If an oil tanker is on the path to destruction, it usually meets its end
after a derailment and the [possible] subsequent explosions. But what it
would take to make one implode?
In their usual tongue in cheek, “don’t try this at home” fashion, the team
on the Discovery Channel’s MythBusters recently took on the challenge
of destroying an oil train tanker car from the inside out, or outside in —
whichever actually proved successful.
According to the urban legend under scrutiny, the interior of a crude-byrail tank car was being steam cleaned when heavy rains hit. The
downpour prompted the workers to seal the tank car, trapping the hot
steam in the tanker. As the rain cooled the now hot tank car, the air
sealed inside compressed, leading to the eventual implosion when the
air pressure difference between the inside and out became too great.
To test this myth, hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman practiced
some very basic science, but on a monumental scale. “If it is indeed
possible for a tank car to crush itself, well then the testing of it is going
to be one of the biggest productions we’ve ever taken on this show,”
Savage said.
Labelling requirements for Agricultural and Veterinary
(AgVet) Chemicals
Safework Australia published several Information Sheets on the 10 Feb
2016
http://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/sites/swa/about/publications/pages/
labelling-agvet-chemicals
Zodiac Fined $1.3M for Explosion
Photo:
bostoncommons.net
Confined
space hazards
can include
suffocation,
toxic
atmospheres,
entrapment
and other
dangerous
conditions that
are fully
preventable.
WATCH VIDEO OF
ORIGINAL STORY
11 days prior to incident, plant evacuated due to flammable vapours
Zodiac Cabin & Structures Support has been fined more than $1 million
for workplace safety and health violations following the investigation of
an explosion that rocked the Newport facility and injured 17 workers
last July.
After a nearly six-month investigation, the Washington State Department
of Labor and Industries fined the employer $1,316,000 and cited them
with 17 willful violations for knowingly exposing workers to the risk of
serious injuries.
The L&I investigation concluded that the explosion could have been
prevented if Zodiac had used required safety interlocks and safeguards
to ensure that the curing oven was used safely and as advised in a
consulting engineer’s report. “Had this explosion occurred during the
day when many more workers were present, there could have been
many more injuries and possibly even deaths,” said Anne Soiza, L & I
Assistant Director of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
Shortly after the explosion a chemical odour was detected in the area
and an evacuation of 1,000 feet was implemented. The evacuation was
lifted six hours later after investigators determined the chemical odour
had dissipated over time and no longer posed a risk to the public.
Chemicals including acetone and alcohol were believed to be on site.
Due to the danger of an explosion, specific safety interlock controls and
other safety procedures were supposed to be in place before the highly
flammable resins were used in the 90-foot drying oven. Those controls
were not in place, despite the fact that Zodiac had advice from its
contracted consulting engineer detailing the steps needed to ensure
safe operation prior to using the flammable uncured resins.
The investigation found that flammable resins had been run through the
oven a number of times prior to the explosion. L & I also discovered that
11 days before the incident, the plant was evacuated due to flammable
vapors that created a risk of explosion in the same operation.
Four of the serious violations were for not ensuring effective control
procedures were in place to protect workers when they had to reach
inside the curing oven for cleaning, service or maintenance. Working
inside a confined space area, such as the oven, without safety
precautions can be deadly to both workers and rescuers.
An additional six violations were related to failing to prevent ignition of
flammable vapors and protect workers from inhaling harmful vapors and
chemicals, such as from solvent and formaldehyde.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Zodiac is one of the world’s
largest suppliers of aircraft interiors to airplane manufacturers like
Boeing and Airbus. Source: DAILYBEE.com
IATA Expects Lithium Ion Ban
IATA says it expects the ICAO Council to endorse the position of the Air
Navigation Commission (ANC) to impose a ban on the carriage of lithium
ion batteries as cargo on passenger aircraft. ICAO’s Dangerous Goods
Panel discussed such a ban last year but reached a compromise that
would allow UN 3480, PI 965 lithium ion batteries to continue to be
carried on passenger aircraft, subject to certain conditions. The new
rules are due to take effect on 1 April.
ANC subsequently reviewed this and, under pressure from some states,
recommended a total ban until adequate risk mitigation measures can
be put in place. A final decision will be made by the ICAO Council later
this month, but IATA expects the Council to endorse the ANC position
and that the ban will be introduced on 1 April. Both ICAO and IATA will
issue addenda before that date.
Explosion-proof Lithium-ion Battery Shuts down at High Temperatures
US scientists have designed a lithium-ion battery that self-regulates to
prevent itself from overheating. Reaching high temperatures, the battery
is able to shut itself down, only restarting once it has cooled. A team
from Stanford University says the innovation will remove the danger of
exploding batteries, seen recently in accidents in traditional lithium-ion
batteries contain a pair of electrodes and a liquid or gel electrolyte to
carry the charged particles. If the battery’s temperature reaches 150
degrees Celsius, the electrolyte can catch fire and cause an explosion.
"People have tried different strategies to solve the problem of
accidental fires in lithium-ion batteries," said Zhenan Bao, a professor of
chemical engineering at Stanford. "We've designed the first battery that
can be shut down and revived over repeated heating and cooling cycles
without compromising performance."
Bao and her colleagues describe the new battery in a study published in
the January 11 issue of the journal Nature Energy.
Read Full Story and Watch the Stanford Video
Lithium Batteries Could Spark
‘Catastrophic’ Plane Fires, FAA Warns
Image: ctvnews.ca
HOVERBOARD EXPLOSION DESTROYS CHILD'S BEDROOM, SENT
FAMILY RUNNING FROM SYDNEY HOME
NT's McArthur River Mine: Race to Avert Disaster
When a giant toxic waste dump spontaneously ignited at one of the
world's largest zinc mines, serious questions were asked about how it
could have happened.
The McArthur River Mine's
waste rock dump was
burning for more than a
year (ABC: Jane Bardon)
In the Northern Territory's Gulf country, Indigenous residents fear
they're on the cusp of an environmental disaster.
They're calling for the McArthur River Mine, the world's largest bulk
zinc-lead-silver concentrate exporter, owned by the Anglo-Swiss
company Glencore, to be closed because its waste rock dump and
tailings dam are leaching acid, metals and salts into the McArthur River
system.
The ABC’s Jane Bardon investigates how regulators allowed a mine to
operate with no known solutions to its massive waste problem.
WATCH THE VIDEO: Macarthur River Mine Waste Dump
Bluestar Global Logistics: DG Reg. Fine
Bluestar Global Logistics (Aust) Pty Ltd (‘the defendant’) is a logistics
company involved in interstate transport. On 26 February 2015, one of
the defendant’s prime-movers collided with a truck on the Hume
Highway near Broadford. This caused the prime-mover’s trailer to jackknife. Liquid was observed to be running out of the B Double trailer and
onto the road way. Victoria Police and the Country Fire Authority
attended to clean up the spill. The nature of the chemicals involved in
the incident was not known at that stage as there was no
documentation nor placards indicating the contents of the drums. At
this time, it was also observed that there was no transport
documentation, emergency plan nor safety equipment in the primemover. Bluestar had failed to: i. Placard a load of dangerous goods
(r.88(1)); ii. Segregate dangerous goods from incompatible goods, food
(r.112); iii. Transport documentation for the transport of dangerous
goods (r.130); iv. Provide an emergency plan for the dangerous goods
(r.156(2)); and v. Provide safety equipment, including a fire extinguisher,
when transporting dangerous goods. The defendant pleaded guilty and
was without conviction sentenced to pay a fine of $30,000.00 and to pay
costs of $2,919.00 (before His Honour Magistrate O'Callaghan in the
Magistrates’ Court at Seymour).
Source: WorkSafe Victoria
Two men have suffered burns after a boat exploded east of Adelaide.
They were forced to dive from the boat after its engine exploded on the
Murray River, near Younghusband and Mannum.
Gas Plant says Fire Limited to Tanks
According to a company spokeswoman at Southcross Holdings
LP, they're still trying to figure out what caused a gas treatment plant
explosion near Pearsall on; an explosion so big that smoke could be
seen for miles. The explosion shook the intersection of FM 1583 and
Highway 85 near San Antonio, Texas. Employees and residents in the
surrounding area were evacuated.
"Southcross operating personnel followed appropriate emergency
procedures and our employees and contractors have been accounted for
and evacuated to a safe location... State and other regulatory agencies
have been notified. The facility has been shut down and the fire appears
to be limited to the condensate tanks adjacent to the treating facility."
Crews eventually shut off a valve to halt the fire. Deputies say that the
fire erupted when one worker was unloading an oil tanker.
Source: WFAA.com
NZIHM is Seeking Feedback on the Draft Regulations
for Work Involving Hazardous Substances
This exposure draft process is taking place before the Health and Safety
at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations are finalised, to ensure
they are fit for purpose and technically accurate. We want to get expert
stakeholder feedback on whether the decisions taken by Cabinet are
accurately represented in the regulations as drafted. The exposure draft
process also enables us to consult further on specific elements of the
regulations that the government has not yet made final decisions about.
Any other interested party is also welcome to provide feedback on the
exposure draft.
The regulations for work involving hazardous substances carry through
requirements currently prescribed under the Hazardous Substances and
New Organisms Act 1996 (HSNO Act) in regulations, transfer notices,
individual substance variations, and group standards, with some
modifications to simplify requirements. The regulations also incorporate
changes to codify existing good practice, in some cases based on the
provisions of the Australian Model regulations.
For more detail on the decisions the government has already made on
aspects of the regulations, areas we are seeking feedback on, and to
download a copy of the draft Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous
Substances) Regulations 2016 (Consultation Draft) go to:
http://www.mbie.govt.nz/info-services/employment-skills/workplacehealth-and-safety-reform/development-of-regulations-to-support-the-newhealth-and-safety-at-work-act/exposure-drafts-of-phase-oneregulations/draft-regulations-for-work-involving-hazardous-substances
Methylated Spirits Accident in Sydney
Photo: NSW Ambulance
Facebook
Two young girls have suffered burns after a methylated spirits burner
spilt over and caught fire at a home in Sydney's south.
Paramedics and firefighters were called to reports the children had
suffered burns from an accident involving a fondue burner.
The girls, aged five and seven, were cooled in the home's shower before
paramedics arrived and treated them before taking them to Sydney
Children's Hospital.
The five-year-old girl suffered burns to her arms, legs and chest while
the seven-year-old had burns to her chest, arms, hands and face.
© ninemsn 2016
Phillipines: Ban on Roadside Gas Vendors
Photo: msn.com
The city government of Cotabato is giving petroleum products vendors
along major city streets until the end of the month to dismantle
makeshift gasoline stations or face penalties and other charges.
Aniceto Rasalan, executive secretary to Cotabato City Mayor Japal
Guiani, said upon the recommendation of the Bureau of Fire Protection
(BFP-Cotabato City), all shanties and makeshift stores selling petroleum
products will be dismantled starting March 1.
"This is to save lives and properties," Rasalan said, adding that the
action also aims to prevent fires and other related accidents.
At least 200 makeshift petroleum stores selling gasoline, crude oil, gas,
and other motor vehicle products are found operating in various villages
in Cotabato City.
Dr. Danda Juanday, Cotabato City administrator, said the two-week
grace period would allow gasoline vendors, locally called "Tingi-Tingi"
gas stations, to look for other sources of income other than what is very
dangerous.
Rasalan explained that softdrink bottles are not recommended as
containers for highly flammable petroleum products. "Anytime it may
explode when expose to direct sunlight," he said.
Sidewalk gas stations have no safety measures to ensure lives and
properties are safe in the event a conflagration occurs.
Under the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 8479 or
“Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998,” a business
operator need to register with the Department of Energy, secure fire
safety permits from the Bureau of Fire Protection, Environmental
Compliance Certificate from DENR-Environmental Management Bureau,
and other permits like building permit, zoning clearance, and business
permit from the local government units.
"Without these permits, selling petroleum products is illegal and must
be penalized," Rasalan said.
Source: http://www.interaksyon.com
Firefighters Pump Jet Fuel Instead of Water
The Washington State Patrol is investigating a serious mishap that
occurred Oct. 25th at its fire training academy in North Bend.
During a training exercise, firefighters mistakenly pumped jet fuel
instead of water onto a flaming mock-up of an airplane crash.
KING 5 obtained video that shows an enormous fireball erupted when
the fuel hit the flames at the training site.
When the firefighters put water on a fire that had been deliberately
developed for training the fire got bigger instead of smaller, said Bob
Calkins of the State Patrol, which is investigating the incident.
Calkins said investigators believe that the academy’s oil/water
separator which recycles the water used for fire training exercises did
not correctly filter the jet fuel used for the exercise from the reclaimed
water.
So crews filled their tanks with water tainted with jet fuel - a
combustible combination.
Calkins said an expert hired by WSP is investigating whether the 1990 s
oil/water separator malfunctioned or whether academy employees did
not operate it correctly.
Two firefighters suffered minor burns.
Source: www.king5
WATCH VIDEO
Pemex Again – Three Dead in Fire
Three offshore workers died in a fire outbreak that struck an offshore
platform operated by the Mexican oil company Pemex. According to
Pemex, two deceased workers were Pemex employees, one of which
died in a hospital, while the third worked for Cotemar. Nine workers,
including the one who died at the hospital, were injured in the incident.
The accident happened aboard the Abkatun A platform in the Campeche
Bay. According to Pemex, the fire is under control. Pemex further said
that there was no need to evacuate the Abkatun A, as the fire was
already isolated.
This is not the first time the Abkatun platform has been involved in a
fatal accident. In April 2015, at least four workers died when a fire hit
the platform, causing a substantial damage.
What is more, the news of the latest accident comes only two weeks
after Pemex evacuated workers from its Zaap E production platform in
the Gulf of Mexico due to a fire outbreak on Friday. No injuries were
reported during the incident.
Source: www.offshoreenergytoday.com
Man taken to Hospital after Boat Fire
Image: Twitter.com
A man has been taken to hospital with facial burns after a boat photo in
Blairgowrie, south of Melburne. He is in a stable condition.
The Country Fire Authority (CFA) have since brought the fire under
control.
Source: 9News
UAE – Fuel Tank Factory Catches Fire
The Civil Defence teams in Sharjah contained a fire which erupted in a
fuel tank refill factory in Al Sajaa area on Friday.
Brigadier Abdullah Al Suwaidi, Director of the Civil Defence Department
in Sharjah, said they had received a tip-off alerting them that a fire in a
plant in Sajaa area had ignited.
Instantly upon receiving the tip-off, the Civil Defence teams from
Sharjah as well as fire trucks from Dubai and Ajman, rushed to the spot
to control the fire and prevent it from spreading to neighbouring
factories.
The incident resulted in the gutting of one of the reservoirs and flames
spread to neighbouring tanks, but Civil Defence teams controlled it
within the hour.
Al Suwaidi pointed out that the fire caused minor injuries to workers and
damaged the plant and reservoirs.
Al Suwaidi called upon factories’ owners which have flammable
materials to provide systems for combating fires, after full coordination
with the Civil Defence to install them.
He also asked them to take full precautions to fight any combustion that
may occur.
Source: Gulf Today
South Texas Gas Plant Fire Injures Two
Shipyard Fire in Veracruz Llave, Mexico, believed to
have started in docked vessel.
N.Z. Refinery Investigates Fire
A man injured in a fire while doing demolition work at Marsden Pt. oil
refinery remained in Whangarei Hospital yesterday.
It was the second day he had spent in hospital after being burned on the
arm by a fire at the Refining NZ plant about 4.30pm on Tuesday.
Refining NZ communications and external affairs manager Greg McNeill
said there was a fire on a decommissioned platformer unit at the
refinery.
He was not sure how many people had been working in the area or how
the fire started.
Determining what sparked the blaze would be part of an investigation to
be carried out by the refinery's incident management team.
Mr. McNeill said the fire was quickly contained and extinguished by a
specialist emergency services team based on site.
"The emergency services team is trained medically as well. The injured
person was attended to and the fire contained within minutes," Mr
McNeill said.
"Having a team on site means they can contain things very quickly
before they get out of hand."
Source: NZ Herald
SO3 Leak at Cincinnati Chemical Factory
If you have any
interesting pars please
send to
[email protected]
Many thanks this
month to Don Johnston
and Jeff Simpson
Pilot Chemical called in a sulfur trioxide leak Middletown Fire Chief Paul
Lolli said.
Lolli described SO3 as a “corrosive and toxic chemical” and said, “If it
gets onto skin, it could cause some serious medical problems.”
The facility said a truck was transporting 3,500-4,000 gallons of the
liquid when an unknown amount leaked out.
According to Lolli, the liquid, which turns to gas when it exits the tank,
created a small plume prompting the department to issue a shelter in
place for nearby residents.
"All of the chemical was contained into a spill pit. The main concern
was that a plume was created once the liquid leaked out of the tanker,
it turns to a gas and creates a cloud a plume, that starts drifting the
way of the weather," Lolli said. "The good thing is today had a breeze
out of the east at about 5-10 miles an hour. That aided in carrying off the
dangerous substance and dilute it somewhat."
Source: WLWT5
Watch: Middletown chemical leak briefly locks down
nearby school
OSHA Regulations Seek To Prevent
Large-Scale Industrial Tragedies
The recent Tianjin port
explosion is a showcase
of what can go wrong if
safety regulations aren't
enforced. (AP Photo)
Too often, better regulation of businesses and industries only occurs
following potentially preventable tragedies, with Highly Hazardous
Chemicals (HHC) being a prime example. Few knew of Bhopal, India
until the deadly methyl isocyanate gas escaped from a chemical plant
and spread airborne, killing thousands. Even with today’s safeguards,
five chemical incidents each day are reported.
Prompted primarily by Bhopal, more than two decades ago the
Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA) issued
unprecedented regulations for Process Safety Management (PSM) of
HHCs. Although this standard focuses only on high-risk releases, it cuts
across the business spectrum because chemicals are so widely used.
READ FULL ARTICLE IN MANUFACTURING NET
About The Author: Adam Jackson is VP-Engineering for ACS Engineering.
Owner Wants $20 Million for Ethanol Plant Fire
Image: 2014 fire at Fergus
Falls ethanol plant (KFGO)
A 2014 fire at a Fergus Falls, Minneapolis, ethanol plant has led to a
federal lawsuit that seeks nearly $20 million. Green Plains Otter Tail
LLC is suing California-based Pro Environmental Inc.
Green Plains Otter Tail says the fire was caused by a defective
rubberized coupling that was manufactured by Pro Environmental. The
company says the fire and explosion were the result of negligence and
required a shutdown of the plant.
Green Plains Otter Tail says the fire caused more than $19,900,000 in
damages. No one was hurt.
The plant can manufacture up to 55-million gallons of ethanol each year.
Source: KFGO, Jim Monk
Peru Oil Spill - Water Emergency For Thousands
CREDIT: Shutterstock
Thousands of residents in the northern Peruvian jungle are facing a
water quality emergency following two pipeline ruptures that spilled
crude oil into various waterways — including a tributary of the Amazon
River — damaging a vast area known for its ecological value.
At least 2,000 barrels of oil were spilled in the regions of Amazonas and
Loreto, though 90 percent of the spillage has been recovered, Peruvian
President Ollanta Humala said this week, according to published
reports.
Source: Climate Progress, Alejandro Davila Fragoso
There have been changes to these Technical Data Sheets.
New and/or updated data sheets are easily identified by red highlighted
text, indicating "Last Update."
To view all new changes, please visit www.fmglobaldatasheets.com.
Significant changes in this update include:
DS 7-31
Storage of Aerosol Products
DS 7-49
Emergency Venting of Vessels
LPG Storage Plant in Batangas on Fire
An LPG storage plant at Salong Village, Calaca, in the Philippines, has
been on fire and Fred Bragas, regional information officer, Office of the
Civil Defense (OCD)-Calabarazon, said that a general alarm has been
declared in the area and a total of 559 individuals had been evacuated
to Calaca Central School for temporary shelter as a precautionary
measure in case of gas explosion.
He added that personnel of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) in
Batangas and nearby provinces are still fighting with the fire with
special chemicals because of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the
depot that needs special skills and special equipment to contain.
Meanwhile, food packs were distributed to the evacuees from the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Batangas
province, Bragas said.
BFP personnel are still investigating the cause of the fire at the gas
depot.
Phoenix Petroleum shutdown
The LPG storage plant of a locator, South Pacific Asia Inc., was pointed
to as ground zero of the fire in the industrial park, but Phoenix
Petroleum's oil depot at Calaca, Batangas may shut down for at least
three days to ensure complete checks on the facility.
Phoenix Petroleum spokesman Raymond Zorilla clarified it was not their
depot but an LPG plant from another company co-located in the park
that caught fire. Zorilla said that though they have been advised that the
fire has been already contained from the nearby facility, it will still take
at least two to three days before they can resume operations.
"We need to check the integrity of our facility and take all necessary
precautions first," Zorilla said. Source: Philippines News Agency