Incident Report

Subject:         HSE Safety Notice - Storage tank external floating roof: the importance of inspection and maintenance to retain buoyancy of the roof structure

Date of Email report:  Tue 08/07/2014 21:04

Report Detail:

Thanks to Niall Ramsden for bringing this to our attention

A recent Safety Notice from the UK’s Health and Safety  Executive claims that insufficient attention is paid to inspection of floating roofs. LASTFIRE has always stressed the importance of roof inspection – and particularly checking pontoons for vapour as a good fire hazard management measure.

This safety notice describes the potential hazards relating to the specification, inspection and maintenance of external floating roofs for storage tanks built to BS 2654 , BS EN 14015
and API 650 . There has been a recent incident, along with findings from further investigation, that suggest the examination and maintenance of floating roofs is not given sufficiently priority.

This safety notice stresses the importance of maintaining the integrity of the roof, including taking precautions to maintain the buoyancy of the structure. Failure of the roof can lead to a loss of containment, and has the potential to lead to a major accident (as defined in the Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations), such as by evaporation or ignition of hydrocarbons, or by pollution to ground via open roof drains….

Additional Documentation: