Explosion at Kleen plant in Middletown-several fatalities?
Sunday, Feb07,2010 -Middletown, CT
There was a big explosion and fire at the Kleen power plant in Middletown, Connecticut, that may have had several fatalities. More than 100 divisions of Police, Fire department and other Emergency services were responded to the accident. The injured were being shifted to hospitals and emergency care facilities by helicopters. A search for survivors in the blast rubble at the site is on.
Apparently the plant had not yet opened and was still in the construction phase. People several miles away heard the blast and shockwaves. The gas based power plant had several contractors working on it. An unconfirmed report claimed that a survivor said that he was thrown up 30 feet in the air due to the blast!
The blast was so powerful that it could be heard for several tens of miles in the area surrounding the plant. Residents of Clinton, Prospect, Madison, Deep River, Ivoryton and Durham could feel the impact.
Reporters are not being allowed entry near the site by emergency officials.
Though the cause has not yet identified, it appears to have happened during gas line purging. Ironically just two days ago the CSB has voted to change the codes that apply to this kind of operation, due to the findings in the Conagara Slim Jim blast.
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For an excellent training course on Safety Instrumented Systems, just click here
Silver Eagle refinery explosion surveillance video footage
The CSB (U.S. Chemical Safety Board) has released footage from a surveillance camera that has captured the explosion at the Silver Eagle refinery in Utah that happened recently. The video shows how big an explosion can happen in a manner of a fraction of a second. The fireball that is seen can be more than 100 feet across, but enough about me telling it, watch it yourself below. It is a reminder to all of us to never underestimate the hazards that are present in large scale hydrocarbon processing.
Cause of Caribbean Petroleum Tank Farm Fire was faulty level indications says CSB
Here’s an update on the the Caribbean Tank Farm Fire from the CSB (US Chemical Safety Board).
Bayamon, PR, November 17, 2009 – The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) today announced that it will be conducting a full investigation of the October 23, 2009 explosion and fire at Caribbean Petroleum Refining. CSB investigators continue to examine the events and circumstances surrounding the catastrophic tank explosion and fire.
At 12:23 a.m. on October 23, a large vapor cloud ignited at the Caribbean Petroleum facility near San Juan, Puerto Rico. The blast damaged homes and businesses over a mile from the facility. Investigators from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board arrived in Puerto Rico that evening. Over the past few weeks the five-person investigation team has conducted numerous interviews, requested hundreds of pages of documents and catalogued key pieces of evidence.
CSB Board Member William Wright said, “The CSB will conduct a thorough and comprehensive investigation of this accident; our team will uncover exactly what events led to an explosion of this magnitude. Our goal is to determine not only what happened, but why it happened.”
At the time of the incident a tank was being filled with gasoline from a ship docked in San Juan harbor. Investigators have determined that a likely scenario leading to the release was an accidental overfilling of the tank. Gasoline spilled from the tank without detection; as the material spilled it vaporized and spread across the facility. CSB investigators estimate that the vapor cloud spread to a 2000 foot diameter until it reached an ignition source in the northwest section of the facility.
The CSB found that on the evening of the incident, the liquid level in the tank could not be determined because the facility’s computerized level monitoring system was not fully operational. In order to monitor the level in the tank, operators used a mechanical gauge on the tank’s exterior wall. Therefore as the gasoline , employees located in the facility’s control room were unaware of the emergency.
“The filling of a tank without a functioning monitoring system is the type of activity the CSB will be examining very closely,” said Investigator-in-Charge Jeffrey Wanko, P.E. CSP. “The CSB’s investigation will examine operations particular to Caribbean Petroleum, but will also look at the regulations and best practices surrounding the industry as a whole in an effort to improve safety practices at similar facilities.”
So once again the same old story about poor level monitoring and overfill protection systems continues….the last such level monitoring failure was at Buncefield in the UK, where a malfunctioning level indicator caused overfilling and a massive explosion and fire. (Read more about it on this bog by typing Buncefield in the Search box)
On a side note: To prevent accidents and such undesirable events, it is not only essential that your plant or facility have the necessary instruments and systems, but also your staff needs to have training in how to use them. An example would be the excellent training course on hazardous area instrumentation here and another one on gas monitors here.
Explosion and Fire at Silver Eagle Refinery-CSB deploys investigative team
Washington DC, November 4, 2009 - A six-member team from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is deploying to the scene of today’s explosion and fire at the Silver Eagle Refinery in Woods Cross, Utah.
According to local officials, the explosion in the diesel hydrotreater unit caused damage to homes in the surrounding area and was felt several miles away from the facility.
The CSB is investigating a January 2009 flash fire at the same refinery that burned two refinery operators and two contractors. The investigation team will be led by CSB Investigations Supervisor Donald Holmstrom and will be arriving Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.
This seems to be an unfortunate season of accidents and undesirable events at petroleum facilities all over the world. Whether this is a coincidence, or a reflection of today’s cost cutting management practices, needs to be investigated more in depth.
Caribbean Petroleum Corporation Tank Explosion in Puerto Rico
Nov 18 Update: Cause of the accident found out- please click here for the detailed story.
This week seems to be the season of refinery accidents. After the Tesoro refinery fire, now we have another one, this time in Puerto Rico.
Oct 25, 2009- A large fire that reportedly broke out in the Caribbean Petroleum Corporation’s Bayamon facility in Puerto Rico is still raging without any signs of getting under control anytime soon. More than 150 firefighters are working continuously at the scene, backed by the National Guard. News from various sources say that about 1500 people have been evacuated from their homes. Schools in the vicity are reportedly closed due to the incident.
The fire began after an explosion in the facility, that was heard for miles around. Surprisingly explosions reportedly happened in as many of 12 out of the 40 or so storage tanks at the location.
What adds a twist in the tale is the suspicion, that it may have been an act of sabotage. To investigate this aspect, sources claim that FBI agents are on the hunt for the perpetrators, who have scrawled graffiti about it in a San Juan tunnel.
The US Chemical Safety Board (CSB for short), has also stepped in to investigate and has now deployed a six member team of investigators to travel to Puerto Rico immediately. CSB Investigator Jeff Wanko, PE, will lead the team which is expected on the island soon.
And to top it all, a lawyer has already gone ahead and filed a class action suit against Caribbean Petroleum Company in the Federal District court in San Juan.
A huge cloud of acrid smoke, as seen in the picture below has started enveloping parts of San Juan. However Gov. Loius Fortuno, reportedly denied to reporters that the event can be classed as an environmental disaster.
Here’s a picture of the fire that gives a perspective of it’s scope and severity.
CaribbeanPetroleumFirePuertoRico
Stay tuned for more developments on this one on this blog.
