USA - TANKER EXPLOSION KILLS DRIVER, SPARKS BRUSH FIRE

A tanker hauling 8,000 gallons of fuel flipped and exploded in Orange County Saturday, killing the driver and sparking a brush fire in some nearby woods.

Witnesses said the driver of the fuel tanker was speeding around a ramp to the Beach Line on Consulate Drive when the vehicle rolled and exploded. "The truck made a left-hand turn and overturned one and a half times and it burst into flames," a Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. said. "

Rescue workers said the driver did not stand a chance because seconds after his truck rolled over, it burst into flames and he simply did not have enough time to escape," a Local 6 News reporter said. Officials said thousands of gallons of fuel spilled on the road and into some nearby woods. "Fuel spilled over into the woods around the scene and started a woods fire,"

The Orange County Fire Asst. said. "We had to have that as almost a separate incident." Police closed all lanes of state Road 528 and Consulate Drive for hours as 60 firefighters battled the flames from the truck and wildfire. "It was a big challenge because of the heat and the amount of water it takes to put something like this out," the Orange County Fire Asst said. The fire was so hot that it melted the truck and nearby street signs. "The truck is so badly burned that we can't even determine what is the name brand of the truck or who even operates it," the Orange County Fire Assts said. About 1,000 gallons of fuel remained in the tanker early Sunday forcing authorities to keep Consulate Drive closed. Smoke from the crash could be seen for miles.

AUSTRALIA - NEW REGULATIONS FOR DANGEROUS GOODS AND EXPLOSIVES COMING SOON

New regulations for the control of dangerous goods and explosives are being finalised, taking account of public comment received on the draft regulations.

The dangerous goods regulations will be made under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 as amended, and the explosives regulations will be made under the new Explosives Act 2003. Until these regulations and the Explosives Act come into force the Dangerous Goods Act 1975 and the Dangerous Goods (General) Regulation 1999 continues to apply.

WORLDWIDE - TANK ENTRY FATALITY

Two crewmembers died in a recent incident onboard a VLCC discharging crude oil. Around midnight on the day of the incident, the chief officer (C/O) encountered problems pumping cargo from the tanks and the vessel was instructed to locate the reason for the loss in suction. The C/O suspected this to be due to a leaking dresser coupling on the cargo line in the centre tank. Once the tank atmosphere was released onto the open deck and the tank pressure reduced, a suction sound from within the tank indicated a leak in the cargo line.

The inert gas blower was changed over to the fresh air mode for tank entry and readings of the tank atmosphere were 1% by volume for Hydrocarbon gases and 6.5% by volume for Oxygen. Emergency rescue equipment was prepared at the tank entry point and an emergency team kept ready. The C/O instructed a deck fitter to don a self contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and go into the tank but he refused because the tank was not gas free.

The C/O woke another fitter from his sleep but he also refused to enter the tank for the same reason. The master donned a SCBA to enter the tank himself but the chief engineer (C/E) suggested two engine fitters could enter the tank instead and so woke them from their sleep. At around 04.50 hours the engine fitters and assistant chief officer (Asst. C/O) entered the tank with two torches, two radios and various spanners between them. The inert gas line and cargo lines were not blanked and the entry party did not carry personal gas detectors.

The coupling was approximately seven bays from the ladder section and the crew were wading through 30cm of crude remaining in the tank where visibility was estimated at two metres. Around 0554 hours the low pressure alarm of one of the SCBA sets in the tank was heard and the master and asst. C/O ordered the fitters out of the tank.

A voice was heard on the radio in Hindi saying ‘we cannot find the way out’ followed by silence. The master and C/E each donned an emergency escape breathing device (EEBD) and entered the tank. By the time they exited the tank the asst. C/O exited too but the fitters remained inside. At the same time the third officer had summoned immediate assistance from ashore. The body of one of the fitters was recovered at 1310 hours and the other at 1945. Setbacks to the fire/rescue crew were due to low visibility, high temperatures and the crude sludge restricting movement.

The investigation revealed that the fitters had vertically descended 22 metres, horizontally traversed 53 metres to reach the dresser coupling and back to the location where their bodies were found. Air in the cylinders of the two fitters had lasted 14-16 minutes. The company safety check list and enclosed space entry permit clearly states that the oxygen reading in the compartments should be 21% and hydrocarbon less than 1% lower flammable limit. Only when the above criteria are satisfied can entry take place.

A permit was not produced at the point of investigation but at a later stage and entered with ‘ventilation of the tank in progress’ – diluting the essence and spirit of the enclosed space entry safety checklist and permit. The master had signed the entry form in place of the leader of the team entering the tank, suggesting that the form was completed after the incident. SCBA should not have been used in this context and when the real emergency arose only one SCBA was available.

The man entry by master and chief engineer into the tank with no clarity of thought after the accident happened is a matter of serious concern as any further accident would have left the vessel without command. Proceedings were brought against the master, chief officer and chief engineer for causing death by rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide, which is punishable by imprisonment, fine or both.

UK - M25 SHUT AFTER EXPLOSION ON LORRY

All eight lanes of a section of the M25 are closed after a lorry containing hydrogen peroxide exploded.

The fire has now been put out on the vehicle which is at junction 13, the exit to Staines in Middlesex. The clockwise section of the M25 between junctions 12 and 13 south west of London has now reopened is closed but anti-clockwise stretch is shut. Police said three of the five lanes on the anti-clockwise side were expected to be reopened by 1600 BST.

The lorry driver has been taken to hospital suffering minor injuries but no-one else has been hurt. The closed stretch is the most congested section of the motorway and was already subject to roadworks due to lane widening. Junction 12 of the M25 is near Virginia Water in Surrey and forms a junction with the M3. Junction 13, near Egham, is just south of Heathrow airport.

An RAC spokesman said: "We expect the section to be closed until at least 3pm. "If you don't need to be in this area, avoid it." A spokesman for Surrey fire and rescue service said a call had been received just before midday. He said about 15 firefighters were currently at the scene. A Fire Officer told BBC News: "Looking at the lorry, it's actually sort of totaly written-off. "It's burnt from end to end, but fortunately nobody was hurt and it was just purely the devastation to the traffic which was caused."

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USA - PROPANE TANK EXPLODES AT NAVAL STATION FIRE TRAINING GROUND, CAUSING FIRE

A 4,500-pound propane tank exploded at Naval Station Newport on Thursday morning, causing a large fire at the firefighting training facility there.

The tank, one of two near the building, exploded with a loud boom shortly after 7 a.m., said a spokesman for the Naval station. The fire, which could be seen around the area, was extinguished around 8:30 a.m. There were no injuries, and the cause was being investigated by the Navy, the spokesman said. “The initial investigation has ruled out vandalism or any kind of terrorism,” he said.

The tanks were surrounded by a chain link fence on top of a large berm, and the building was surrounded by a fence, the spokesperson said. The propane tanks were used to fuel fires at the training facility, where sailors and Navy crews practice fighting fires. There was no training going on at the time of the explosion, and the area is largely unpopulated, the spokesperson said. Navy firefighters were assisted by firefighters from Middletown and Portsmouth in fighting the blaze.

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USA - LEAKING STYRENE RAIL TANKER, CINCINNATI, USA

On Sunday in Cincinnati a rail tanker containing styrene started to vent off. The tanker seems to have been "forgotten" in the system and had been sitting there for months.

Styrene is normally transported with an inhibitor to prevent polymerization which would prevent this from happening. It is likely that this inhibitor has lost it's effectiveness after sitting there for around five months!! An extensive shelter-in-place and then evacuation was implemented and the local Lunken Airport was affected.

The company involved, Westlake Chemicals of Houston, Texas, don't seem to be saying much at this stage other than they don't know why the tanker was there. The City of Cincinnati has estimated that it has already spent over $1 million responding to this incident.

The mayor had a brilliant quote: "Walmart can track a pair of socks and you guys can't even track a railcar filled with dangerous chemicals for six months"

Below are some of the details of styrene from the HazmasterG3 hazmat/CBRN decision aid software:

• Material Profile: clear colourless to dark liquid with an aromatic odour. Flash point 90°F. Density 7.6 lb/gal. Vapours heavier than air and irritating to the eyes and mucous membranes. Subject to polymerization. If the polymerization takes place inside a closed container, the container may rupture violently. Less dense than water and insoluble in water. Used to make plastics, paints, and synthetic rubber.
• Melting Pt: -1°F/-18°C
• Boiling Pt: 293-295°F at 760 mm Hg (145-146°C)
• Auto Ign: 914°F/490°C
• Flash Pt:(unspc): 88°F/31°C
• LEL: 1.1%
• UEL: 6.1%
• Spec. Gravity: 0.91
• Vp. Density: 1.1
• Vp. Pressure: 4.3 mm Hg at 59°F/15°C, 9.5 mm Hg at 86°F/30°C, 10 mm Hg at 95°F/35°C
• IE: 8.43 eV
• RAE 9.8CF: 0.45+
• RAE 10.6CF: 0.4+
• RAE 11.7CF: 0.4+
• Styrene Monomer: is a colorless, oily liquid, moderately toxic, flammable. A storage hazard above 32°C, involved in several industrial explosions caused by violent, exothermic polymerization. Polymerization becomes self-sustaining above 95°C. Presence of an inhibitor lessens but does not eliminate the possibility of unwanted polymerization. Violent polymerization leading to explosion may be initiated by peroxides (e.g., di-tert-butyl peroxide, dibenzoyl peroxide), butyllithium, azoisobutyronitrile. Reacts violently with strong acids (sulfuric acid, oleum, chlorosulfonic acid), strong oxidizing agents. Reacts with oxygen above 40°C to form explosive peroxide. Oxidizes readily in air to form unstable peroxides that may explode spontaneously. Mixing styrene in equal molar portions with any of the following substances in a closed container caused the temperature and pressure to increase: chlorosulfonic acid, oleum, and sulfuric acid.
• C8H8
• NOAA, 2003

USA - REFINERY FIRE BUMPS PRICE

A fire at a gasoline-producing unit at Tesoro Corp.'s biggest refinery spooked oil traders Thursday and may contribute to higher prices at the pump over the Labor Day weekend, oil experts said Thursday. No one was injured in the fire, which occurred in the plant's fluid catalytic cracking unit that produces gasoline.

The Golden Eagle refinery, about 35 miles northwest of San Francisco, has the capacity to process 168,000 barrels per day. San Antonio-based Tesoro is investigating the fire and it isn't yet known how long the unit will be down, a Tesoro spokeswoman said. "Hopefully tomorrow we'll know more," the spokeswoman said. The unit that's shut down can produce about 66,500 barrels of gasoline a day. "It's a tough break for Tesoro," said chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service, based in Wall, N.J. "If you wanted to pick a terrible time for a unit to be down, this is it, because it's a tremendous opportunity lost for the days that it will be down," he said. "It's like an ice cream truck breaking down on the hottest day of the year at the beach." Tesoro's stock fell more than 2 percent Thursday, dropping $1.15 a share to close at $51.63 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The chief oil analyst said Tesoro's refinery fire "led spot prices to go a little bit nutty" Thursday. "All the gas markets are white-hot," Kloza said. "That means worry and higher prices." U.S. benchmark crude contracts for October reached a record Thursday, closing at $67.49 a barrel in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

AAA, in its weekend driving report issued Thursday, said Texas' per-gallon average gas price was $2.555 a gallon, up from $2.536 a gallon a week ago. San Antonio's average rose about a penny, to $2.476, up from $2.464 a week ago. Traders cited refinery problems such as the Golden Eagle fire and worries that Hurricane Katrina could interfere with production in the Gulf of Mexico. The fire at the Tesoro plant is the latest in a rash of incidents that have plagued the U.S. refining industry.

At least 20 accidents or stoppages have occurred at refineries in the past month, industry experts say, as rising demand for gasoline has meant plants are running at 93.4 percent capacity. The most serious accident in more than a decade occurred March 23, when an explosion at BP's Texas City refinery killed 15 workers and injured 170.

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USA - HURRICANE KATRINA DISRUPTS PRODUCTION OF MAJOR INDUSTRIAL PLANTS ON GULF COAST

The effects of hurricane Katrina have suspended many industrial plant operations in at least eight different counties in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. There are over 260 industrial plants located in the counties of Mobile and Baldwin, Alabama, Harrison, Hancock and Jackson, Mississippi and Jefferson, Saint Charles and Plaquemine, Louisiana employing an estimated 58,000 people.

Many large petroleum refiners and petrochemical producers began reducing production rates and preparing for a controlled shutdown on Friday, August 26th, and by Saturday August 27th, most had shutdown completely. A very small number of industrial plant operations in the affected region have resumed some small level of production, although several major natural gas and product pipelines serving these plants with feedstock remain out of service limiting production.

Pipeline companies are aggressively evaluating the level of damage to determine what repairs are necessary to restore operations safely, and as of this writing some limited throughput on the Colonial and Plantation Pipeline crude oil pipeline systems had resumed.

Many companies are working this Labor Day holiday to repair damage and return to production. New Orleans based power generator, Entergy Corporation is working round the clock to repair damaged transmission lines, electrical substations, and power plants that were damaged during the hurricane. Entergy serves 2.7 million customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

About half of those customers lost power due to the storm. Entergy provides electrical service to eleven petroleum refineries in the impacted area. Three of the refineries did not lose electrical service and the company has reestablished power to five others. The remaining three are downriver from New Orleans and have suffered from flooding. The company hopes to restore service to those flooded refineries within ten days.

Of the ten petroleum refiners and two major ethylene producers in the region that Industrialinfo.com identified as offline due to the hurricane, almost half will remain down for several more weeks while three refiners have already returned to service and at least one other is in the process of ramping up for production early next week.

Dow Chemical Company (NYSE:DOW ) had planned back-to-back maintenance turnarounds of its two ethylene production units located in Taft, Louisiana beginning in mid-September. The units remain offline and a decision is expected soon to either rescheduled the turnarounds or go ahead and proceed with planned maintenance activities ahead of schedule.

At least 43 power plants were located in the path of Katrina and still hundreds of thousands remain without electricity. The process of identifying electrical substation damages and transmission line failures could take weeks and even longer to repair, many months in some cases.

The level of damage to other industrial plants located in the path of devastating hurricane Katrina is still being evaluated, as the nation mobilizes to rescue and rebuild New Orleans and Gulf Coast areas.