Explosion and Fire at Texas City Chemical Plant

[i_dont_chat]

Channel 13, Houston, Texas, just reported a series of 4 explosions and a large fire at Amoco Chemical Company in Texas City -- I think it is called BP now.

My mother in TC felt 2 of the blasts. Plant is at Highway 146 and Texas Avenue.

[rickylc]

That's good news!!

[WestCoastGal]

8 30 pm 73°F

Plant explosion in Texas City
Updated: 3/30/2004 8:16 PM
By: News 24 Houston

We're receiving reports of a plant explosion in the Texas City area.

Witnesses report seeing multiple explosions and flames in the vicinity of one of the nearby plants.

Authorities say it happened at the BP Amoco Chemical Plant in Texas City located at FM 519 East.

A shelter in place is currently in effect for Texas City and La Marque.

If you are in the area, you should go inside, shut your windows and turn off your air conditioning.

The cause of the explosion is not yet known. At this point there are no reports of injuries.

Amoco reports that all employees are accounted for.

Stay with News 24 Houston for more information.

[Dog Gone]

BP acquired Amoco in 1998. This chemical plant is now known as the BP Amoco Chemical Texas City Site, but I'm sure most employees and residents still refer to it as the Amoco Chemical Plant.

[Cold Heat]

Crap!

I was trying to say, if there is a wind, then SIP is good.

If the stuff is just a irritant and there is little or no wind, SIP is good.

But one or the other must be the situation.

Sulphur dioxide will kill if there is no wind, for example.

[rickylc]

Hey, I'm from Ohio so I have absolutely no clue!!!

:)

Just going by the news reports.

Didn't mean to come down hard, sorry if I did.

[Mark Felton]

I'm in Clear Lake also. small world

[txhurl]

Shelter-in-place bump.

[deport]

KHOU-TV

The fire can be seen from a road block at least a mile away.

[Frank_Discussion]

Whatcha doing right now, eh? (Besides freeping, that is.)

[BigSkyFreeper]

If I remember right, BP owns AMOCO.

[WestCoastGal]

Explosions Rock Texas City Plant
Residents To Shelter-In-Place

POSTED: 8:22 pm CST March 30, 2004
UPDATED: 8:32 pm CST March 30, 2004

TEXAS CITY, Texas -- Several explosions sparked a fire at a Texas City refinery Tuesday night.

Fire crews were called to the BP Amoco chemical plant on S. 5th Avenue and 25th Street around 7:45 p.m.

"The fire is a furnace unit," said Annie Smith, with BP Amoco. "All of our employees have been accounted for."

No one was injured.

Nearby plants were evacuated as a precaution and Texas City and La Marque residents were asked to shelter-in-place since hydrocarbons were burning.

Shelter-In-Place Order

When a shelter-in-place is issued, residents should:
Go inside
Shut all doors and windows
Turn off air conditioners and heaters to prevent outside air from getting inside
Stay off the phone
Do not use fireplaces. Put out fires and close all dampers.
Move to a room with the fewest windows and doors. Tape around doors, windows, exhaust fans and vents using plastic sheeting or garbage bags, if directed.
Turn on the radio or television to listen for further instructions

Families are advised to have the following items in a shelter-in-place kit.
Two rolls of duct tape
Cloth and paper towels
Plastic sheets or trash bags
Flashlight and extra batteries
Battery-powered radio
Two gallons of water
Nonperishable foods

Residents heard the explosions and then saw the fire.

"We saw the flames, which were pretty high … seems to be pretty serious," said Matt Lynth, a resident.

Several streets in the area are closed, so motorists are advised to avoid the area.

News2Houston's chief meteorologist Frank Billingsley said a light northwest wind carried the smoke away from Texas City and toward the Gulf.

Stay tuned to News2Houston and Click2Houston.com for the latest on this breaking news story.

[cmsgop]

Thanks for the pic

[philo]

hopefully, It's not as bad as the one they had 50 years ago

http://www.texas-city-tx.org/docs/history/exp.htm 1947 Texas City Disaster

[Frank_Discussion]

Ditto.

[LOC1]

From local channel 13, this appears to be a furnace fire in a chemical processing unit at BP-Amoco refinery/chemical plant in Texas city. This may be a steam cracking furnace used to produce olefins (ethylene, propylene, etc). Seem to remember that facility has steam cracking capability. If so, the furnaces operate at moderately high temperatures and pressures. A split tube could lead to this type of incident, but way too early to tell if that is the case. There do not seem to be any injuries. People on the phone in the neighborhood are calm. My initial reaction is that this is an industrial accident similar to the one at the Phillips chemical plant in Houston a few years ago, but with none of the injuries that occurred in that incident.

[deport]

Series of explosions rocks Texas City refinery

A series of explosions rocked the bp Amoco plant in Texas City.

ABC13 Eyewitness News
(3/30/04 - TEXAS CITY, TX) — A shelter in place has been issued for residents in Texas City after a series of explosions rocked the area.

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According to eyewitnesses the first blast at the bp Amoco chemical plant occurred around 7:15pm. Some witnesses say there were at least four explosions - the fourth being the loudest.

According to B.C. Clawson with the Texas City Emergency Management, the fire occurred in the furnace area. After the explosion, hydrocarbon feed stock was burning off.

It doesn't appear the smoke is toxic, but authorities issued a shelter in place order. Residents in the area should stay indoors. Police have shut down State Highway 146 near the plant.

Texas City firefighters are trying to get a handle on the flames and some witnesses say the flames are beginning to die down a bit.

"We're about five miles away where the incident occurred and we were standing out on the porch and saw the explosion and saw a big burst of flames right off the bat," said eyewitness Steve Letterman.

All workers have been accounted for, and no injuries have been reported.

Stay with ABC13 Eyewitness News for the latest on this developing situation.
(Copyright © 2004, KTRK-TV)

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/033004_local_explosion.html

[LurkedLongEnough]

Houston ping

[WestCoastGal]

Considering what happened in 1947 a few nerves must be jangled this evening.

When someone in Texas City mentions "The Explosion," no explanation is necessary. Everybody in the city knows what happened on April 16, 1947. Many remember it firsthand. That cool spring morning when a ship blew up in the port on Galveston Bay. The blast took nearly 600 lives and millions of dollars in property, and it scarred the town. A half-century later, people in Texas City celebrate their recovery, but still mourn their loss.

[Dog Gone]

Do not use fireplaces. Put out fires and close all dampers.

It was in the 80s today in the Houston area. I think most residents use their fireplace once per year, on Christmas Eve with the air conditioning running.

[Mark Felton]

This was the refinery I toured with my 2 sons during a homeschool outing last year.