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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 3 april 2019

2nd Texas chemical fire in about 2 weeks kills worker

By JUAN A. LOZANO ment on the worker who
Associated Press was killed and the two who
HOUSTON (AP) — A tank were injured, only saying
holding a flammable they were part of KMCO’s
chemical caught fire at a operations department.
Texas plant Tuesday, killing KMCO, which was founded
one worker, critically injur- in 1975, is a chemical com-
ing two others and sending pany that offers coolant
panicked employees flee- and brake fluid products
ing over a fence to safety. and chemicals for the oil-
Harris County Sheriff Ed field industry.
Gonzalez confirmed the fa- The Crosby, Sheldon and
tality in a tweet and said the Channelview school dis-
two injured had been taken tricts asked students and
by helicopter to a hospital. staff to shelter in place at
The two injured were in criti- all their campuses. But lat-
cal condition, said Rachel er Tuesday afternoon, all
Moreno, spokeswoman for three districts lifted those
the Harris County Fire Mar- orders to shelter in place.
shal’s Office. The Texas Commission
Authorities shut down a on Environmental Quality
roadway near Tuesday’s said that it has dispatched
fire at a KMCO chemical emergency response per-
plant in Crosby, about 25 sonnel to conduct an initial
miles (40 kilometers) north- assessment of the fire.
east of Houston, Gonzalez This photo taken by the Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office shows the KMCO Chemical plant Foley said his company’s
said. Fire crews battled the Tuesday, April 2, 2019, in Crosby, Texas. number one priority “is
blaze for about 5 ½ hours Associated Press safety and compliance.”
before they extinguished it, cal plant was inundated by in the production of high over a fence to escape “We have a long track re-
according to the fire mar- water during Hurricane Har- octane gasoline — which because all the gates were cord of investing in the,
shal’s office. vey in 2017. Some chemi- then caught on fire. locked. people, the systems and
All residents within a one- cals eventually caught fire The fire spread to a near- Pilar Davis, a product man- the assets to operate safe-
mile radius of the plant were and partially exploded. by warehouse where dry ager with KMCO, said none ly,” he said.
ordered to stay indoors or “It is disturbing and it is prob- chemicals are stored. of the emergency evacua- KMCO has had environ-
shelter in place for about lematic that we’re seeing Moreno said the Environ- tion points at the plant were mental violations in the
four hours. It was not imme- this incident in a facility, mental Protection Agency blocked during the fire. past, according to a review
diately known how many especially on the heels of” has been testing air sam- At a news conference late of records.
residents were affected by the fire in Deer Park, said ples from the area around Tuesday afternoon, John In 2016, KMCO’s corporate
the shelter in place. Crosby Harris County Judge Lina the plant and has not found C. Foley, chief executive agents pleaded guilty to a
has about 2,300 residents. Hidalgo, the county’s top any harmful readings. of KMCO, said a cause of federal criminal charge of
The fire sent a large black administrator. Worker Justin Trahan told the blaze is still being de- violating the Clean Air Act.
plume of smoke into the air. Samantha Galle lives less Houston television station termined. “We will conduct A plea agreement docu-
The fire erupted about two than a mile away from the KPRC that he heard “some a thorough investigation ment stated that a plant
weeks after a March 17 plant and said she heard panic on the radio” but no ... and take steps to en- employee made false en-
blaze at a petrochemical and felt an explosion Tues- alarms sounding before the sure this doesn’t happen tries in logs of air testing of
storage facility in Deer Park day. plant caught fire. again,” Foley said. tanks that were known to
, located about 20 miles (32 “It shook everybody’s “We didn’t think anything Davis said the fire initially be leaking chemicals. An-
kilometers) south of Crosby. house around here,” the of it — we didn’t think it was ignited with isobutylene other employee then used
That fire at a facility owned 23-year-old said. anything severe,” he said. but was fueled by ethanol those falsified logs to sub-
by Intercontinental Termi- Gonzalez said a transfer Trahan said employees be- and ethyl acrylate. All three mit reports to the federal
nals Company burned for line at the KMCO plant ig- gan running after “the tank are chemicals and solvents and state environmental
days and triggered air qual- nited in the area of a tank ignited.” used to make fuel additives authorities. The document
ity warnings. Crosby also is of isobutylene — a flam- He said that he and other at the plant. says the violation went on
where an Arkema chemi- mable colorless gas used colleagues had to jump Davis declined to com- between 2008 and 2012.q