Monthly Summary of Accidents Involving Process Chemicals or Flammable Materials


		AcuSafe -> July 2000 Newsletter
		Monthly Summary of Accidents Involving Process Chemicals or Flammable Materials

Here are news summaries of the most significant process-related incidents that were brought to our attention between June 20 and July 20. In some cases, a more detailed story is available at AcuSafe.

7/16/00 Second Major Pipeline Explosion in Nigeria this Month
Just days after an explosion in southern Nigeria killed 200 people scavenging fuel, an unrelated pipeline blast 7/16 left dozens (according to witnesses) dead. Sixteen people were confirmed dead and 10 were seriously injured, but the counts are preliminary.

The latest explosion and fire, which was extinguished in a few hours, occurred along a river between the villages of Ifie and Ijala, 3 miles south of the oil port of Warri. While the cause has not been confirmed, it is believed that the fire was caused by vandals using pumps to suck the fuel from the pipeline into metal drums loaded on several boats. Fuel drums exploded and spread a slick of fire across the water surface.

7/16/00 Fire at Acid Transformation Plant Outside Montreal, Canada
An explosion and fire at the Regent Chemical Products Plant 16 miles outside Montral, Quebec forced the evacuation of at least 3,000. The fire took place in the acid transformation plant, which is believed to contain up to 13,000 gallons of toxic materials, including sulfuric, nitric and hydrochloric acid. No serious injuries were reported and tests showed no serious environmental damage.

7/14/00 Two Fires at Anhydrous Ammonia Production Plant in Lawrence, Kansas within One Week
A second explosion in a week shut down operations Friday, July 14 at the Farmland Industries plant in Lawrence. No injuries were reported after an explosion ignited a fire in an anhydrous ammonia production plant about 3:30 p.m. The explosion likely released hydrogen from a pipeline and ignited the fire at the plant, one mile east of Lawrence near Kansas 10, Lawrence Fire officials said. The Lawrence plant primarily manufactures nitrogen-based fertilizer and employs about 150 people.

7/10/00 Anhydrous Ammonia Explosion in Lancaster, PA
An explosion at Hanover Foods-Lancaster division, a packager of frozen mushrooms, blew out two first floor windows and a 25 foot section of an internal wall of a building.  An employee was severely burned with second and third degree burns on his chest and arms.  A nearby resident was treated and released at a local hospital. 32 employees were also evacuated after the explosion. Employees put out a fire started by the explosion and stopped the leak within minutes according to the report.

Local authorities believe that a flange on an air compressors failed, causing the safety valve to fly off releasing ammonia.  The ammonia then may have mixed with oil in the workshop area resulting in the explosion.

7/10/00 Pipeline Explosion in Nigeria Kills 200
A fire and explosion in southern Nigeria, which took five days to extinguish, reportedly killed about 200 villagers who witnesses said had been scooping up gasoline with buckets. Police sealed off the scene of Monday's explosion, about 12 miles from the Niger Delta town of Jesse where almost 1,000 people died in a similar incident in 1998. Intentional pipeline damage is common in Nigeria, and vandals have triggered numerous explosions in the past. At least 497 cases of vandalism were recorded last year, according to the state petroleum company.

7/6/00 Workers in Chemical Weapons Depot in Utah Injured Following Sulfuric Acid Spill
While workers were cleaning a line in the U.S. Army Chemical Weapons depot in Tooele, Utah, sulfuric acid leaked, injuring six workers. No chemical weapons were involved in the incident. The workers suffered from burns and inhalation of fumes; all were treated onsite and two were also evaluated at the University of Utah burn clinic.

7/6/00 Spectators of a Russian Gasoline Tanker Car Fire Injured
A gasoline tanker car exploded during efforts to extinguish the car. The explosion killed a firefighter and injured injuring 80 spectators who were watching the firefighting efforts. Twenty-four people were hospitalized, eight in serious condition suffering from burns.

The cause of the fire was unknown, but the cause is thought to be carelessness during pumping of fuel into the cars. Local officials credited railway workers with averting worse damage by moving other tanker cars away from the fire, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.

7/5/00 Glycidol Leak at Bayport Chemical Plant Causes Reactor Explosion
An unknown amount of glycidol leaked, and that caused a 2,000-gallon reactor to explode at Dixie Chemical Company's Plant A. Bob Murphy, the plant's administrative manager, said workers were producing a batch of glycidol crude when a "runaway reaction" occurred for an unknown reason. The resulting explosion tore apart a sheet metal building and started a fire that was extinguished within 15 minutes. One man was taken to a Nassau Bay hospital, and the other to a hospital in Pasadena. Both were expected to recover. Murphy said both glycidol and methanol were released, but he said he wasn't aware of any fumes leaving the plant site and that nothing was detected downwind. Glycidol is an intermediate chemical used in sealants for windows and film processing. Although it isn't lethal or heavy chemical liquid, exposure can cause burns to the skin.

6/30/00 Chinese Fireworks Factory Blast Prompts Factory Closures
A fire and explosion at a fireworks factory in southern China killed at least 36 people and injured 160 others, Hong Kong media reported. The blaze broke out at the factory in suburban Jiangmen city, about 50 miles north of Macau, and spread to two nearby factories. According to China's official Xinhua News Agency, managers of the Jiangmen factory ignored an April 4 order from fire officials to improve their alarm and firefighting systems. An emergency order issued 7/2 for Guangdong province, where the explosion took place, required that factories producing fireworks or disposable lighters be shut down. According to an official of the Jiangmen city propaganda office who gave her name only as Huang, some factories would be permitted to reopen pending a safety inspection, while others in densely populated areas would be closed permanently.

6/30/00 Leaking Gasoline Pipe Explosion in Philadelphia Refinery
A leaking pipe carrying heated gasoline exploded at Sunoco's south Philadelphia refinery, injuring one person and closing the Schuylkill Expressway for about 90 minutes. The explosion took place as workers were shutting down the unit to repair the leak. Raw gasoline and hydrogen in a pipe were inadvertently exposed to air. The injured worker suffered only minor injures and was treated at the scene. At the same Philadelphia refinery a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit was down from a June 21 release of catalyst; the FCC was restarted July 5.

6/28/00 Ammonia Refrigeration Leak at Pakistani Cold Storage Facility
A fire and toxic release at the Punjab Cold Storage facility in Darogha Wala area of Lahore resulted in one fatality and other injuries. Dozens of people fainted as the toxic ammonia fumes spread, according to the official Associated Press of Pakistan.

6/27/00 Ammonia Leak at Caldwell, Idaho Milk Plant
A worker was severely injured attempting to shut off a leaking valve in an ammonia refrigeration system. The leak took place at the WestFarm Foods Co. facility in Caldwell, Idaho while the worker was servicing the ammonia system. Twenty-four workers were evacuated from the plant, which makes cheddar cheese and powdered milk.

6/25/00 Gas Leak at Kuwait Refinery
A gas leak killed five workers, injured 50 others, and severely damaged parts of the Mina al-Ahmedi refinery in Kuwait. Within 24 hours, the blaze was contained, but temporarily shut down the entire refinery; Kuwait's oldest and largest. Al-Ahmedi produces 441,000 barrels per day (bpd) of the country's overall 931,000 bpd capacity, and the explosion has reduced Kuwait's overall production capacity to 490,000 bpd. Gasoline, diesel, aviation and other fuels were all produced there. In addition, the explosion caused extreme damage to the refinery's two gasoline production units, which had a combined capacity of 36,000 bpd, leaving Kuwait with one gasoline production unit of 15,000 bpd at the Shuaiba refinery. The oil ministry claims that so far the reduced production has not affected exports.

The immediate political fallout was swift, with oil minister Shiek Saud Nasser Al Sabah submitting his resignation to Amir Jabir al-Ahmad al-Jabir Al Sabah the following day. In a prepared statement, the oil minister said of his resignation, "Although I'm not criminally responsible... my political responsibility drove me to put my resignation this morning before his highness the emir." Other top oil ministry officials also submitted resignations.

Preliminary estimates for repairing the affected units were released on June 27, with a price tag of $ 324 million and six months labor.

6/23/00 Chlorine Fire in New Zealand
In Waimairi, New Zealand six persons were injured when a worker added water to a chlorine substance, which caused it to ignite. It burned the chemical contained in two drums. 45 people were evacuated from the factory, and businesses within a 150 meter radius of the factory were also evacuated as a precaution. The fire was quickly extinguished using carbon dioxide fire extinguishers, and smoke dispersed using the factory's ventilation system. The factory said it would review its chemical storage procedures.