Explosion in the West Fertilizer Company

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aerial view of the site five days after the explosion

The explosion at the West Fertilizer Company in West , Texas , 18 miles north of Waco occurred at 7:50 p.m. on April 17, 2013, while emergency services were trying to put out a fire that had broken out there.

The process is reminiscent of similar explosion accidents in connection with ammonium nitrate such as B. the Texas City Explosion in 1947 or the accident at BASF in Oppau in 1921 .

The investigating authority, the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board , after the investigation was completed in January 2016, the number of fatalities was 15, including 12 firefighters and three bystanders. More than 260 people were injured. The damage that occurred outside of the factory premises was given in January 2016 at more than 100 million US dollars, which confirms initial estimates by the Association of Texas Non-Life Insurers. The total damage incurred was put at 230 million US dollars. On May 11, 2016, the investigative authority BATF announced that the explosion had been caused intentionally. No information was given on suspects, perpetrators or motives. Other sources, including the Occupational Safety and Health Administration , raised doubts about the version of the BATF, not least because its assumption of an attack for which there was no evidence was based on it, and no evidence of other possible causes was found either to have.

background

Map of West Texas

The West Fertilizer Company was founded in 1962 and supplied chemicals for agricultural purposes. The facility was inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 1985 and found minor violations of regulations on the storage of anhydrous ammonia as well as health protection regulations. After complaints from the neighborhood about odor nuisance from ammonia, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality examined the facility and found two unapproved tanks containing anhydrous ammonia. A license to operate these tanks was granted retrospectively and the requirements of the authorities were met. About 24 tons of anhydrous ammonia were stored in the facility. A fire hazard was considered to be excluded. Based on this assessment, neither a suitable fire protection concept existed nor were fire extinguishing systems installed. In 2012 the Environmental Protection Agency reported a storage amount of approximately 240 tons of ammonium nitrate and about 50 tons of anhydrous ammonia. Quantities over 180 kg are actually under the supervision of Homeland Security . However, they were not informed of the amount stored.

Fire and explosion

Seismogram from Hockley, Texas, 228 km southeast of west, demonstrating the magnitude of the quake caused by the explosion

One part of the facility caught fire on April 17, 2013 and later exploded when fire fighters tried to contain the flames. The explosion destroyed various buildings including the West Middle School, which was located near the factory, and a nearby apartment building. According to measurements by the United States Geological Survey, the force of the explosion corresponded to a magnitude 2.1 earthquake. The explosion also damaged the West Rest Haven nurses home. The majority of the people killed were rescue workers, including volunteers who were on site to fight fires.

The explosion left a crater about 28 meters in diameter and destroyed 142 residential units; 300 houses and vehicles were affected to varying degrees. The destruction caused by the explosion was documented by the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board . The extent of the devastation can be assessed on Google Earth by comparing the 2012/2014 images (position: 31 ° 49 ′ 0 ″  N , 97 ° 5 ′ 16 ″  W ).

On 19 April 2013 President called Barack Obama the state of emergency in order federal funds for the reconstruction of the destroyed village of West can be freed.

Reactions

On April 25, 2013, the central commemorative event took place in Waco , attended by Michelle and Barack Obama and the Governor of Texas , Rick Perry , among others . President Obama announced that "the nation would help rebuild".

After the 2015 Tianjin blast , Vanessa Allen Sutherland called for greater efforts to ensure the safety of such facilities. The incomplete safety standards and guidelines would have made the disaster in West possible. The incident goes back to a failure of the West Fertilizer Company, but also the authorities and insurance companies.

Web links

Commons : Explosion in the West Fertilizer Company  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ ADAIR GRAIN INC., DBA WEST FERTILIZER CO., EPA Facility Registry System. Retrieved April 19, 2013 .
  2. ↑ Explosion hits fertilizer plant north of Waco, Texas. Retrieved April 18, 2013 .
  3. ^ Hillary J. Cohen: Sunshine Act Meeting. CSB to Hold Public Meeting in West, TX. US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board , April 11, 2014, accessed April 13, 2014 .
  4. ↑ Shauna Lawhorne: Chemical Safety Board to Convene January 28 public meeting in Waco, Texas, to Release Final Report and Safety Recommendations Resulting from West Fertilizer Investigation. US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, January 15, 2016, archived from the original January 15, 2016 ; accessed on January 15, 2016 .
  5. ↑ a b c Improve oversight of fertilizer plants. Retrieved April 26, 2013 .
  6. ^ A b Matt Dempsey: CSB chief: West explosion shouldn't have happened. Houston Chronicle, January 28, 2016, accessed August 21, 2016 .
  7. ↑ Ralph Ellis: Fire that led to Texas fertilizer blast set on purpose, officials say . CNN. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  8. ↑ Experts cast doubt on ATF's arson finding in deadly West Fertilizer explosion. Houston Chronicle , August 2, 2017, accessed April 16, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Texas Fertilizer Plant Had Last OSHA Inspection In 1985. Associated Press via Huffington Post. Archived from the original on April 22, 2013 ; Retrieved April 19, 2013 .
  10. ↑ stream.wsj.com ( Memento from April 28, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
  11. ↑ M2.1 Explosion - 1km NNE of West, Texas. In: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program. Retrieved April 26, 2013 .
  12. ^ Krauss, Clifford and Santos, Fernanda: Report: As many as 35 killed in Texas plant explosion . In: New York Times . Retrieved April 19, 2013. 
  13. ↑ UPDATE: Evacuations ordered in West after fertilizer plant blast . In: WacoTrib.com . Waco Tribune Herald. April 17, 2013. Retrieved April 17, 2013.
  14. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdDuHxwD5R4
  15. ↑ Obama Declares Emergency After Texas Plant Blast. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013 ; Retrieved April 20, 2013 .
  16. ↑ Obama tells families of Texas blast victims that nation will help them recover . In: CNN.com . April 25, 2013. Retrieved April 26, 2013.
  17. ↑ Vanessa Allen Sutherland: Sutherland: From Tianjin to West, what we need to learn. Houston Chronicle , August 16, 2015, accessed January 16, 2016 .
  18. ^ West Fertilizer Final Investigation Report. US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board , January 28, 2016, archived from the original on December 28, 2016 ; accessed on August 21, 2016 (English, PDF).