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Puck
The Texan
Joined: 05 Jan 2004
Posts: 5596
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 Wed Mar 23, 2005 11:06 pm 14 Feared Dead in Texas Refinery Blast |
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14 Feared Dead in Texas Refinery Blast
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
TEXAS CITY, Texas � A thunderous explosion tore through a BP oil refinery (search) Wednesday, shooting flames and billowing smoke into the sky and showering the area with ash and chunks of charred metal. At least 14 were believed dead and more than 100 were injured.
The cause of the explosion was not immediately known.
Workers searched through rubble for survivors or bodies into Wednesday night, several hours after the 1:20 p.m. blast. An undetermined number of workers were unaccounted for; most of the injured suffered broken bones, cuts, concussions and other injuries.
Refinery manager Don Parus said BP was waiting on an official death toll confirmation from the medical examiner's office, but added, "it's my deep regret that we believe we have 14 losses of life."
The blast left a gaping hole in the earth, mangled nearby offices, and was so powerful that witnesses said it rattled homes as far as 5 miles away. Cars and trucks in an employee parking lot were coated with soot and debris.
"It was real scary. Have you ever heard the thunder real loud? It was like 10 times that," said plant worker Charles Gregory, who was with several co-workers inside a trailer tank when the floor started rumbling.
The explosion occurred in a part of the plant used to boost the octane level of gasoline. BP spokeswoman Annie Smith said terrorism "is not a primary focus of our investigation."
The plant in Texas City (search), about 35 miles southeast of Houston, sprawls across 1,200 acres. About 433,000 barrels of crude oil are processed a day, producing 3 percent of the U.S. supply. The plant employs about 1,800 people in Texas City, a city of about 40,000 people.
Gasoline prices could rise slightly because of the explosion because the plant is such a large gas producer. Gasoline futures rose nearly 2 cents in late trading on news of the explosion.
The explosion caused panic in this oil town, with many residents fearing the worst as they awaited word on their friends and family members who work at the plant.
Within minutes of the explosion, officials ordered a "shelter-in-place," meaning residents had to stay inside until authorities could be certain the air was safe. Children were ordered under their desks until the rumbling subsided.
Valerie Perez was among those standing outside the refinery fence, worried about her 18-year-old husband who works there and hadn't contacted her. Perez, who has a 3-month-old baby, said her husband always takes his cell phone to work. On Wednesday, he left it behind.
"I'm nervous," she said, holding back tears.
Wenceslado de la Cerda, a 50-year-old retired firefighter, said the blast shook the ground, rattled windows and knocked ceiling panels to the floor.
"Basically, it was one big boom," he said. "It's a shame that people have to get killed and hurt trying to make a dollar in these plants, but that's part of reality."
The plant and town have dealt with refinery explosions in the past.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (search) fined the refinery after two employees were burned to death by superheated water in September.
Another explosion forced the evacuation of the plant for several hours last March. Afterward, OSHA fined the refinery $63,000 for safety violations, including problems with its emergency shutdown system and employee training.
Texas City is the site of the worst industrial accident in U.S. history. In 1947, a fire aboard a ship at the Texas City docks triggered a massive explosion that killed 576 people and left fires burning in the city for days.
"Welcome to life in Texas City," Marion Taylor, 55, said Wednesday as she entered a convenience store shortly after the explosion.
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Theresa
Lux Mihi Deus
Joined: 17 Jun 2001
Posts: 27256
Location: United States of America
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| Wed Mar 23, 2005 11:10 pm |
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Wow. That looks bad.
-------signature-------
Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with our scars
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Beta6
Commander
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 475
Location: ~*City Of Angels*~
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| Thu Mar 24, 2005 5:01 pm |
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| Quote: | AP
Death Toll in Texas Plant Blast Hits 15
6 minutes ago
Add to My Yahoo! U.S. National - AP
By PAM EASTON, Associated Press Writer
TEXAS CITY, Texas - The lone worker unaccounted for after an explosion at a BP oil refinery was found dead in the rubble, bringing the death toll to 15 in a blast that also injured more than 100 people, officials said Thursday.
Photo
AP Photo
AP Photo Photo
AP Photo
Slideshow Slideshow: Deadly Blast at Texas BP Refinery
AP Video Texas Oil Refinery Blast Kills at Least 14
(AP Video)
BP spokesman Bill Stephens said the worker was found near the site of the blast. Earlier, officials said records had indicated the worker checked out and left the refinery after the Wednesday afternoon explosion.
Officials said about 1,100 employees and 2,200 contract workers were at the refinery when the blast shot flames into the sky, forced schoolchildren to cower under desks and showered plant grounds with ash and charred metal. It rattled windows more than five miles from the 1,200-acre plant near Houston.
The cause of the explosion was not immediately known. Don Parus, the plant's manager, said it happened during scheduled maintenance work in an area of the refinery that boosts the octane level of gasoline.
The initial 14 deaths reported were contractors for J.E. Merit Constructors Inc., a field services provider and subsidiary of Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. in Pasadena, Calif., Parus said. It was not immediately clear if the 15th was also a contractor there.
"Our focus has been entirely on the people who are affected by this," said Jacobs spokesman Rod Sharp. He said he would issue a detailed statement after investigators gather more information.
The plant typically processes about 433,000 barrels of crude oil a day, producing 3 percent of the U.S. supply. Other than the unit affected by the blast, the rest of the refinery was running normally, said Stephens, spokesman for BP, formerly British Petroleum.
BP Chief Executive John Browne said the blast would not affect the U.S. gas supply.
"The bulk of the refinery is operating, and operating well," Browne said.
Browne spoke during a news conference at Texas City's City Hall, less than a block from the convention center where contractors' families were gathering to go identify victims at the Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office.
A thorough investigation is under way, BP America president Ross Pillari said.
"It's clear that we have a lot of work to do in the coming days to make sure we understand exactly what happened, and we're going to do that," Pillari said. "We are going to put all of our resources into it." Federal investigators also planned to review the accident.
Wenceslado de la Cerda, a 50-year-old retired firefighter, said the blast shook the ground, rattled windows and knocked ceiling panels to the floor.
"Basically, it was one big boom," he said. "It's a shame that people have to get killed and hurt trying to make a dollar in these plants, but that's part of reality."
The plant and town, population 40,000, have dealt with two other recent refinery accidents.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (news - web sites) fined the refinery nearly $110,000 after two employees were burned to death by superheated water in September.
Another explosion forced the evacuation of the plant for several hours last March. Afterward, OSHA fined the refinery $63,000 for 14 safety violations, including problems with its emergency shutdown system and employee training.
Texas City is the site of the worst industrial accident in U.S. history. In 1947, a fire aboard a ship at the Texas City docks triggered a huge explosion that killed 576 people and left fires burning in the city for days.
"Welcome to life in Texas City," Marion Taylor, 55, said Wednesday. "I was born here and pretty much, it happens from time to time." |
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
Posts: 1229
Location: The Other Side
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| Thu Mar 24, 2005 8:59 pm |
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| Theresa wrote: | | Wow. That looks bad. |
Believe me, the people of Texas City have seen much worse. And the safety and rescue training in the plants there is top-notch. Regardless of the cause, it could have been worse.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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