1990 ARCO explosion
Date | July 5, 1990 |
---|---|
Time | 11:21 p.m. CDT |
Location | 2502 Sheldon Road[1] Channelview, Texas, United States |
Coordinates | 29°49′5″N 95°7′20″W / 29.81806°N 95.12222°W |
Type | Explosion |
Cause | Build-up of oxygen and hydrocarbon vapors in wastewater tank |
Deaths | 17 |
Non-fatal injuries | 5 |
An explosion at the
The land along the
Following the accident, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fined ACC about $3.48 million for over 300 violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the largest OSHA fine at the time. Additionally, the company agreed to safety changes at its other three plants in the United States. Damages were estimated to total $100 million; however, ACC spent only $36 million in repairs and upgrades at the Channelview plant including $20 million on safety redundancies.
Background
Previous industrial accidents in the area
The
Arco Chemical Channelview plant
In the Ship Channel community of
On the northwestern edge of the plant,[1] in a remote utility area,[4] was a 900,000 US gal (3.4-million L) storage tank, measuring about 40 feet (12 m) tall and 62 feet (19 m) in diameter,[11] that temporarily stored wastewater from the plant's propylene oxide and styrene monomer operations.[6] After treatment, this liquid was transferred to an on-site disposal well.[6][12] The wastewater, which was held in the tank at atmospheric pressure,[6] usually contained some hydrocarbon liquids that would result in hydrocarbon vapor and oxygen building up in the vapor space of the tank.[6] To prevent these vapor levels from reaching dangerous levels, the tank had an oxygen analyzer that provided a continuous readout of the oxygen level in the tank, and excessive oxygen and hydrocarbon vapor could be purged through a nitrogen sweep system.[6] A compressor would move this vapor to a pressurized tank where it would be scrubbed before being vented to the atmosphere.[6] Throughout early 1990, this compressor required additional maintenance, and it had been out of service for 41 percent of the year.[13] In late June 1990, this compressor stopped working, and ARCO removed the piece of equipment and began venting the vapor from the tank to the open atmosphere, which had been the standard method of vapor disposal practiced at the plant before scrubbing was introduced as part of an environmental upgrade to the facility.[6] On July 4, the nitrogen sweeping system was turned off to allow workers to modify some piping and instrumentation,[6] as well as general cleaning of the tank,[5] before restarting the compressor.[6] The system had been turned off only after the oxygen analyzer showed safe levels of oxygen within the tank.[6][13] The following day, July 5, the compressor was to be restarted.[1] At the time, there were several dozen people working the night shift at the facility,[note 6] with five working in the immediate area of the tank.[1] However, the number of people in the area was larger than usual due to the cleaning of the tanks.[5]
Explosion
At 11:21 p.m. CDT,[note 7] an explosion occurred when the compressor for the wastewater tank was being restarted.[15] The explosion resulted in a large flame that rose at least 100 feet (30 m) over the Houston Ship Channel,[15][1][note 8] resulting in large plumes of black smoke.[1] The blast was felt by people as far as 8 miles (13 km) away,[15][1] and windows in some nearby homes were reportedly broken from the pressure wave.[1] At the facility, an area of roughly one city block was severely damaged by the explosion.[6][1][5] The wastewater storage tank was completely destroyed, with an article in the Los Angeles Times describing it as having been "flattened like a soft drink can crushed in a vise".[2] The explosion within the tank had been so powerful that the 48,000-pound (22,000 kg) lid of the tank had been blown off and landed in a parking lot about 200 yards (180 m) away.[11] Additionally, another nearby 15,000-US-gallon (57,000 L) tank was blown 200 feet (61 m) into a pipe rack.[11] Along with the two tanks and the main pipe rack, the explosion also seriously damaged a cogeneration facility and two cooling towers.[1] However, the blast did not affect the MTBE facilities at the plant.[9]
Emergency response
In the immediate aftermath, authorities described the incident as relatively minor, with no reports of any injuries.
Members of the Harris County fire marshal's and medical examiner's offices arrived on the scene following the explosion.[1] While initial reports from company authorities had stated that there had been no injuries,[5] there had in fact been several injuries and multiple deaths from the disaster.[1] The fire marshal's office assisted in body recovery, and by 11 a.m. the next morning, 14 bodies had been found, with two people believed to have been in the plant at the time unaccounted for.[1] Through the day, this number would rise to 15 dead and one unaccounted for.[5] By July 6, the final count had 17 people killed and five injured.[5][15][10] Of the dead, five were Arco Chemical employees and eleven were Austin Industrial employees.[10][5][4] Additionally, a truck driver was found dead in the cabin of their vacuum truck.[5] He was an employee for Waste Processing, Inc., which had been contracted to help with maintenance work.[10][4] Some of the injured were hospitalized at the nearby San Jacinto Methodist Hospital in Baytown, Texas.[1] Speaking about the size of the tragedy, ACC Americas President Jack Johnson said, "In my 32 years I can't remember a single incident of this magnitude where we had multiple loss of life".[1]
Aftermath
Investigation and cause of the accident
On the morning of July 6,[5] Gerard F. Scannell, an Assistant Secretary in the United States Department of Labor and head of OSHA, arrived at the scene, saying he would ensure "that all necessary resources of the Labor Department and OSHA are made available for a complete and timely investigation of this workplace tragedy".[1] Specifically, Scannell stated that OSHA would be reviewing work orders and interviewing people from the plant to determine if the maintenance work that was being conducted at the wastewater storage tank had contributed to the explosion.[4] At the time, authorities were not completely sure if the compressor had caused the explosion.[1][2] OSHA concluded their initial review of the site within a week.[14] By January 1991, according to an article in the Oil & Gas Journal, investigators were "95% sure" regarding the cause and timeline of events regarding the explosion.[6] According to OSHA investigators, the oxygen analyzer in the wastewater tank had malfunctioned on June 15, 1990, resulting in a reduction in the nitrogen purging and a steady buildup of oxygen in the tank that reached dangerous levels.[6] This was further intensified during the maintenance work performed on July 4 and 5, when the nitrogen system was temporarily shut down.[6] As a result, energy from some normal operation around the tank (such as the compressor restarting) provided enough energy to ignite the vapor and cause the explosion.[6]
Use of contracted employees
Several contemporary sources also noted the use of contracted labor in discussions of the explosion. In a 1990 article of
Legal settlements and changes from the company
U.S. and Texas officials opted not to criminally prosecute ACC for the deaths.[10] However, on January 3, 1991, ACC agreed to pay $3,481,300 in fines levied by OSHA for violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act no later than January 10.[6][10] OSHA had fined the company $10,000 for each of the 347 "willful" violations (wherein the company intentionally disregarded or was indifferent to the requirements in the Occupational Safety and Health Act) and a further $11,300 for 15[18] "serious" violations (wherein the company operated while knowing of a serious probability of an accident that could cause injuries or death).[6][10] At the time, it was the largest monetary settlement in OSHA history.[6][19] Other terms of the agreement stipulated that ACC would organize a "process hazard analysis staff" for each of its four U.S. facilities (including the Channelview facility) within 30 days, which would then conduct process hazard analyses and report their findings to their respective OSHA regional offices within 270 days.[6] Within 30 days of these reports, the management of each plant would have to provide written statements and would then have no more than one year to implement the changes recommended by these teams.[6] ARCO, in agreeing to the settlement with OSHA, stated that it did not affirm the accuracy of OSHA's investigation and conclusions regarding the conduct and operations at the plant.[6] However, according to Arco Chemical Americas President Johnson, instead of disputing some of OSHA's conclusions, "we decided it served everyone better if we focused on improving safety of our operations".[6] In addition to the OSHA fines, the company faced lawsuits from the families of several of the deceased workers.[14][20] In total, damages from the explosion were approximately $100 million.[15][21]
In addition to the fines and mandated changes, ACC agreed to revamp safety measures regarding safety training and management at all four facilities in the United States.[6][15] Infrastructure-wise, ACC spent $36 million between July 1990 and January 1991 in repairs and upgrades to the wastewater facilities at the Channelview plant.[6] Of that amount, $20 million was spent on adding system safety redundancies.[6] For example, the upgrades resulted in a change in the number of wastewater storage tanks increasing from three to eight, an increase in the number of oxygen analyzers from one to sixteen, and the installation of a backup nitrogen supply system that sweeps the tanks on a continuous basis.[6]
Later history
In a 2001 book, anthropologist and professor
See also
- List of disasters in the United States by death toll
- List of explosions
- List of industrial disasters
Notes
- ^ Sources differ slightly on the distance, with given distances of 15 miles (24 km),[5] 16 miles (26 km),[3] and 20 miles (32 km).[4]
- ^ Arco Chemical was a subsidiary of parent company ARCO, with ARCO having about an 80 percent stake in the company at the time.[7][8]
- ^ A 1990 article in The New York Times gives a slightly more accurate daily production value of approximately 27,500 US bbl (3.28 million L).[4]
- AP News and the Houston Chronicle.[1][5] However, a 1990 article in The New York Times gives slightly different values of 600 million lb (270 million kg) of propylene oxide and 1.4 billion lb (640 million kg) of styrene monomer.[4]
- ^ Several sources state that the plant employed 350 ARCO employees,[5][4] while a 1990 article in the Houston Chronicle gave the number as about 400.[1]
- ^ Sources vary on the exact number, with a 1990 article in the Houston Chronicle stating that 50 people were working at the time,[1] while a 1990 article in The New York Times gives a number of 65 workers.[4]
- ^ Sources vary on the exact time of the explosion. The time given here is the one given in a report published by the United States Department of Labor.[11] The New York Times and the Associated Press both state that the explosion occurred around 11:30 p.m.[5][4] However, the Houston Chronicle and the United Press International both give an exact time of 11:20 p.m.[1][14] Meanwhile the Oil & Gas Journal states that it occurred "just before midnight".[6]
- ^ One source states the flame rose 200 feet (61 m).[2]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab Horswell 2005.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Kennedy 1990.
- ^ a b c Holcombe 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Suro 1990.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Rendon 1990.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac Oil & Gas Journal 1991.
- ^ Los Angeles Times 1987.
- ^ Brooks 1998.
- ^ a b c d e Petroleum Supply Monthly 1990, p. xix.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Mokhiber 1990.
- ^ a b c d Labor Press Service 1991, p. 5.
- ^ a b Fortun 2001, p. 274.
- ^ a b c Fortun 2001, p. 275.
- ^ a b c d United Press International 1990.
- ^ a b c d e f Gonzales 2015.
- ^ Employment and Housing Subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations 1991, p. 3.
- ^ a b Schwartz 1990.
- ^ Labor Press Service 1991, p. 2.
- ^ Labor Press Service 1991, p. 1.
- ^ Deseret News 1990.
- ^ Dixon, Gullo & Raheja 2018, p. 417.
- ^ a b U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board 2002.
- ^ Axtman 2005.
Sources
- Axtman, Kris (March 25, 2005). "Texas explosion raises concerns about aging refineries". ISSN 0882-7729. Archived from the originalon January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Brooks, Nancy Rivera (June 19, 1998). "Lyondell to Acquire Arco Chemical". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
- "Wife's Suit Against ARCO Thwarts Efforts to Probe Cause of Blast". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. July 8, 1990. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Dixon, Jack; Gullo, Louis J.; Raheja, Dev (2018). "Lessons Learned". In Gullo, Louis J.; Dixon, Jack (eds.). Design for Safety. ISBN 978-1-118-97429-2.
- Employment and Housing Subcommittee of the U.S. Government Printing Office.
- ISBN 978-0-226-25718-1.
- Gonzales, Carolina (July 6, 2015). "25 years later: Looking back at the ARCO explosion in Channelview". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Holcombe, Madeline (March 20, 2019). "Now-extinguished Deer Park blaze joins the list of explosions and fires that have rocked the Houston area". CNN. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Horswell, Cindy (March 25, 2005) [July 5, 1990]. "ARCO refinery explosion, fire kill 14". Houston Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Kennedy, J. Michael (July 7, 1990). "17 Die, 5 Hurt in Blast at Texas Chemical Plant". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- "ARCO to Pay $3.48 Million for Alleged Workplace Violations in July 5 Texas Explosion". Labor Press Service. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Labor: 1–6. January 14, 1991.
- "Arco may get a special payment from a subsidiary". Los Angeles Times. June 23, 1987. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
- Mokhiber, Russell (December 1990). "Corporate Villains: The 10 Worst Corporations of 1990". Multinational Monitor. 11 (12). Archived from the original on July 31, 2020.
- "ARCO Spells Out Cause of Channelview Blast". PennWell. January 14, 1991. Archivedfrom the original on January 14, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- "Explosion Rips Through World's Largest MTBE Unit". Petroleum Supply Monthly. Energy Information Administration: xix. June 1990.
- Rendon, Ruth (July 6, 1990). "Explosion at Chemical Plant Kills 17; Five Injured". AP News. Associated Press. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- Schwartz, Emily (September 1990). "Workers at Risk". Multinational Monitor. 11 (9). Archived from the original on July 31, 2020.
- Suro, Roberto (July 7, 1990). "Explosion Kills 17 at Petrochemical Plant in Texas". ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the originalon January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- "Worker expressed fear of plant explosion". United Press International. July 8, 1990. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- "Two-Year Staff Investigation Points to Gaps in OSHA and Industry Standards for Reactive Chemicals". U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. September 17, 2002. Archivedfrom the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
Further reading
- Introduction to Process Safety for Undergraduates and Engineers. ISBN 978-1-118-94950-4.
- "ARCO to Pay $3.48 Million Fine in 1990 Blast that Killed 17". The Dallas Morning News. Belo Corporation. January 6, 1991. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022 – via The Journal of Commerce.
- "Fatal industrial accidents in Texas". San Antonio Express-News. Hearst Communications. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.