Several of our residents were injured," Plano Mayor John Muns said in a statement, reportedKXAS-TV. The fire, in a remote area, was brought under control after about an hour. In 2010, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board issued a safety bulletin on preventing worker deaths during hot work in and around tanks. A recent publication by the Asphalt Institute, the main trade group for the industry, warned tank owners and operators about the dangers of pyrophoric material formation in asphalt tanks and advised them to evaluate whether their tanks could be affected. GAITHERSBURG, Md. In that case, the blaze was extinguished hours after it began, but Harris County officials said it continued to release toxic pollutants for eight more days. At least 37 people were injured and treated for non-life-threatening injuries, But a 1997 study found that in several cases, fires and explosions had happened in materials like asphalt and No. "Plano Fire-Rescue is working diligently to determine the cause of the blast. Witnesses told local news outlets that they heard a series of booms, which sounded like lightning. ABC-7 reported that police and fire officials could not explain the MADISON, Wis. (AP) Federal regulators have determined that a lack of safeguards during a maintenance shutdown led to a 2018 explosion at an oil refinery in Superior. In a statement several hours after the fire broke out, ExxonMobil said its emergency response teams were still working to extinguish the fire. There was a pipeline explosion today in Fort Bend County, Texas, and flame could be seen from 30 miles away. As a recent investigation by Inside Climate News showed, those increased emissions are going largely unreported by companies. Two people remained unaccounted for. Thus, the potential of asphalt additives to influence the formation of pyrophoric materials in an asphalt storage tank cannot be ruled out.. In that case, it turned out the refinery had previously stored other, more volatile materials in the tank, and small amounts had remained and mixed in with the carbon black, leading to a build up of vapors inside the tank. Davis said industrial hygiene staff were monitoring the air quality at the site and fence line following Thursday's fire. Justin Chambers arrived at the U.S. Polyco plant in Ennis, Texas, on the morning of April 23, 2018, with a job to do. A construction crew was working with explosives to extract material when the explosion occurred. Harley, a 22-year-old living with her boyfriend about two miles from the ExxonMobil facility, said she thought the blast was "a bomb or an earthquake.". One man who lived near the terminal told a local news crew that he heard a loud boom at about 12:49 a.m. and saw that the top of the tank was engulfed by flames. WebIf you or loved one has been injured in a serious accident in a chemical plant refinery accidents, call our San Antonio Plant & Refinery accidents lawyers today. Yet there is reason to believe that changes in the way asphalt and No. An asphalt tank at a plant owned by Rason Asphalt exploded in the early afternoon, causing a loud blast that rattled nearby homes. We are saddened by todays tragedy of a house explosion in our City. The February explosion had no obvious causeno nearby sparks or fires. "We are keeping them and their families close to our hearts and hoping for a swift and full recovery. One witness said he believed the missing man had fallen inside the tank that was to be demolished. There were lightning storms in the area on Monday afternoon. According to the Fort Bend County Office of Emergency Management, the incident happened in an isolated area in a field. Officials added that it's not yet clear when the evacuation order will be lifted. A shelter-in-place order was also issued, affecting around 5,000 people in the area. A fourth person was also being transported to hospital, he said. MADISON, Wis. (AP) Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a lawsuit Monday against a milling company for multiple violations at a plant that was the scene of a fatal explosion five years ago. Please be aware that there is a mandatory evacuation for everyone within a 1/2 mile of the TPC plant in Port Neches. Texas has seen multiple petrochemical industry blazes this year, including a March fire that burned for days near Houston and another that killed a worker at a plant in nearby Crosby. The Surfside Beach Police Department said the facility had experienced "some sort of explosion," but no evacuation orders had been issued. Whats more: Chambers was still alive. Chambers climbed to the catwalk and got ready to separate it from the tops of the tanks. BAGHDAD (AP) Three members of the Iraqi security forces were killed in an explosion north of Baghdad on Wednesday, Iraq's military said. Two package bomb blasts a few miles apart killed a teenager and wounded two Paul Bommer, a petroleum engineer and senior lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, said he once was called as an expert witness in a case in which a tank containing carbon blacka substance similar to asphalt and No. Former Mexican President Vincent Fox expects cannabis bill Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, Buster Murdaugh got 'very drunk' with dad 2 months after mom, brother murdered: source, I'm a professional cleaner ditch these 4 household products immediately, Tom Sandoval speaks out on Raquel Leviss affair: I deserve your anger, Shoeless Ariana Madix awkwardly tries to avoid cheating Tom Sandoval, Prince Harry was scared to lose Meghan Markle after fight that led to therapy, Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant allegedly flashes gun at a strip club, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Ariana Madix, Tom Sandoval have awkward moment amid cheating scandal. By Jason Murdock On 1/24/20 at 7:14 AM EST. A helicopter ambulance was waiting to take him to a hospital in Dallas, but with his clothes covered in asphalt, they decided against it out of fear that the fumes from Chambers clothes and body would overtake the pilot, Slovak said. (AP) A fiery explosion that injured more than a dozen people at a Maryland condominium building was ignited by a resident who intended to kill himself and died in the blast, police said. BAGHDAD (AP) A heating gas tank exploded in a residential complex in northern Iraq on Thursday, killing six people, Iraqi Kurdish officials said. Even in amounts far less than companies routinely use, the additives can have a dramatic effect on how explosive a product is, research shows. Almost instantly, the tank he was standing on exploded. Captain Josh Slovak, a 15-year veteran of the Ennis Fire Department at the time, was on the second engine to arrive at the plant. By The Associated Press. Freeport LNG reported that an incident occurred around 11:40 a.m. at its facility in the 1500 block of Lamar Street at the facility on Quintana Island, according to Brazosport CAER. Gasoline is well known to be a volatile liquid and consequently, gasoline vapors are controlled using an internal floating roof to keep oxygen out and the vapors in, averting potential explosions. An 18-wheel truck hit a train carrying chemicals and fuels in Cameron, Texas, early Tuesday, causing a huge explosion and starting a fire that is expected to burn for several days. / CBS/AP. TOWN OF MAPLE GROVE, Wis. (AP) Authorities investigating a bonfire explosion over the weekend in eastern Wisconsin said Monday that as many as 40 people might have been injured in the blaze, including some who were seriously hurt. These materials are more volatile, can cause greater emissions and become explosive at lower temperatures than asphalt without the additives. Police and multiple fire departments responded at 1 a.m. GAITHERSBURG, Md. Police have said that the two blasts that rocked Austin, Texas, today are related to a similar one that occurred on March 2. She said her windows, air conditioning unit and television started rattling following what she believed was an explosion. On June 30, 2020, a tank holding asphalt mix at the Blueknight Energy Partners terminal in Gloucester City, New Jersey exploded. In many cases, there was hot work or torch heating on or near the tanks, wrote the author, Robert Zalosh. It was so loud.. At least three people were transported to hospital by air ambulance as authorities responded to the major industrial accident in Baytown, just over 25 miles east of Houston, officials said. LOS ANGELES (AP) A Southern California trucking company owner who ordered the illegal repair of a tanker that led to a deadly explosion was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in federal prison. The tanker had brake failure along a major road in the Ofu council area in Kogi state on Thursday night when it collided with a vehicle obstructing the highway, causing a fireball, a police spokesman told The Associated Press. When hydrogen sulfide interacts with oxidized iron inside a tank (in the form of rust, for example), it can form a new compound called iron sulfidea pyrophoric substance that, when exposed to air, can ignite. It is a colorless gas with a gasoline-like odor, used to produce synthetic rubber products like tires, plastics and other chemicals. A gas explosion in an apartment building Saturday killed at least nine people, including four children, on the island of Sakhalin in far eastern Russia, according local authorities. QUINTANA, Texas (KTRK) -- No injuries were reported Wednesday after what police initially described as an explosion at a liquefied natural gas terminal near Freeport. IE 11 is not supported. Inside Climate News uses cookies. At least one house was damaged in the blast, and residents were evacuated from the area, according to the outlet. The bulletin included several key lessons from those accidents, including avoiding the work if possible, monitoring the atmosphere for gas and identifying any potential hazards prior to starting work. All employees have been accounted for, TPC said, confirming two employees and a contractor were injured. 6 oil, in bulk storage tanks across the United States, theres the potential for more explosions like the one that injured Chambers or the ones that kill and injure other workers each year. A fire at an ExxonMobil oil refinery in Texas left several people injured early Thursday after what officials and local residents suggested may have been an explosion. The asphalt in this case was a combination of asphalt and diesel fuel. In court records, he is quoted saying that only skin was keeping his foot attached to his leg. For decades, companies and regulators assumed that emissions from asphalt and No. Asphalt additives affect the rate and type of chemical reactions during asphalt processing and storage, the article said. Fort Bend County Judge KP George said that residents surrounding the area were evacuated as a precaution. Freeport police said to ask the city manager, who then told ABC13 he was not aware of any release. Some industry experts believe that the changes in the volatility of the heavy fuel oils from additives may be behind many explosions in tanks containing asphalt and No. All of the sudden I heard what I thought was my sliding glass door breaking, one neighbor told KTVT. Six days earlier, a similar incident in Stafford, Texas left one man injured and another dead. MAP EMAIL like, a wave," Sarah Martinez, who lives right across from the plant with her 4-year-old son, told NBC News. By continuing to use this site, you accept this policy. Chaos broke out, as flames erupted from one tank and Chambers co-workers were unsure if he was alive inside the other one. As someone who lives close to the refinery, she said, its very concerning. A meteor fell in Mission, Texas today around 5-5:30 pm, making a loud bang, shaking house in a 10 mile radius. The first 11 cars of the train were filled with gasoline, coal and petroleum products, causing the initial explosion and fueling a fire that was still burning Tuesday evening, White said. Numerous residents of the area reported that it "sounded like an earthquake.". Smoke plumes fill air after 18-wheeler collides with train. Martinez said she stayed up for hours, watching the scene unfold. recent investigation by Inside Climate News, Lawmakers Urge Biden Administration to Permanently Ban Rail Shipments of Liquefied Natural Gas, In Pennsylvania, Home to the Nations First Oil Well, Environmental Activists Stage a Peoples Filibuster at the Bustling State Capitol. this year: 5.4 in Mentone , Texas Download the NBC News app for breaking news, "They have got a lot of people working on it," White said Tuesday evening. MINOT, N.D. (AP) A small explosion and fire disrupted care on the third floor of a Minot hospital. Webtoday: 2.5 in Mentone , Texas , United States. A section of the five-story building in the town of Tymovskoye collapsed after a gas cylinder exploded in one of the apartments at around 5:30 a.m. NEWFANE, Vt. (AP) A man was found dead in a home explosion and fire in the southern Vermont town of Newfane early Friday morning, state police said. 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However, in many other cases, the causes were either not identified or not publicly released because of the restrictions imposed during litigation., Zaloshs study concluded that flammable vapor concentrations measured in storage tanks of residual fuel oil and of asphalt have shown the presence of flammable concentrations even when the liquid is well below the flash point.. The personnel were killed when an explosive device detonated during a security operation in the Khan area of the Tarmiyah district. The explosion that injured Chambers was unexpected, but similar accidents had occurred in other places. "Nobody was injured or killed," White said. All Rights Reserved. Over the last decade, at least 17 heated storage tanks containing asphalt or No. Pulitzer Prize-winning, nonpartisan reporting on the biggest crisis facing our planet. Across the street, at the U.S. Polyco plant, Patel saw smoke. 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TOWN OF MAPLE GROVE, Wis. (AP) Sheriff's investigators in Wisconsin are willing to forgo any possible underage drinking violations in order to get more information about a bonfire explosion that injured more than a dozen people, including some critically, officials said Tuesday.