Safety videos from the US Chemical Safety board
Published: 01 October, 2008
The US Chemical Safety Board has released two new case-study safety videos.
The first is a safety video on the July 2007 explosion at the Barton Solvents distribution facility in Valley Center, Kansas.
The CSB found that the most likely cause of the explosion – involving a nonconductive flammable liquid – was a static spark resulting from a loosely-linked, level-measuring float inside the tank. The spark ignited the air-vapour mixture that built up inside the tank as it was being filled. The ensuing explosion led to 11 residents and one firefighter requiring medical attention. The facility was completely destroyed by fire, and 6,000 residents were evacuated.
“When transferring liquids, it is standard industry practice to bond and ground storage vessels, tankers and other equipment to prevent static discharges. But our investigation illustrates how normal bonding and grounding may not be enough to prevent ignition from static electric sparks”, commented CSB Lead Investigator Randy McClure.
The second video details an explosion that led to the deaths of three contractors at the Partridge-Raleigh oilfield in rural Raleigh, Mississippi, in June 2006. All the victims were employees of Stringer's Oilfield Services, an independent contract firm hired by Partridge-Raleigh to perform maintenance on oil storage tanks at the facility.
Entitled 'Death in the Oilfield,' the nine-minute video is based on the CSB's final investigation report, which was voted on and approved by the Board in June 2007.
The videos are available for viewing and downloading in the Video Room of the CSB's website, Safetyvideos.gov.
Tyco secures Turkey’s largest fire suppression contract
Tyco Fire Suppression & Building Products has secured what is believed to be the largest single order ever placed in Turkey for HYGOOD FM-200 fixed fire suppression systems.
The systems, which are being installed by the leading Turkish engineering procurement and contracting services company, Palmet Engineering, are protecting the Turkish Aviation Authority’s five new operating centres that are at the heart of the country’s new air traffic control modernisation.
Tyco is also supplying ANSUL high-pressure CO2 systems for the critical asset protection project and both the FM-200 and the CO2 installations are being controlled by the latest Pyro-Chem detection and activation equipment.
In total, Tyco is supplying 28 tonnes of HYGOOD FM-200 for the 150 occupied control rooms in the five new operating centres and 10 tonnes of ANSUL CO2 for unoccupied areas such as plant and switchboard enclosures. Both systems are UL and FM approved.
