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Fuel tank explodes by Ship Channel
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Aug. 18, 2002, 11:24PM
Soot fills the air as 20 trucks fight blaze for 5 hours
By RON NISSIMOV
Smoke billows from the site of the Houston Fuel and Oil Terminal Co. after a tank containing about 30,000 barrels of residual fuel oil erupted into a massive fire. It took 20 fire and foam trucks to extinguish the blaze in less than five hours. No injuries were reported.
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
A fuel tank erupted into a massive fire that created an ominous-looking cloud of black smoke over the Houston Ship Channel on Sunday morning, but no injuries were reported.
"We were very fortunate there were no injuries to our people and that we were able to quickly isolate the fire to one tank," said Willis Rossler, president and chief executive officer of the Houston Fuel and Oil Terminal Co., on whose premises the fire ignited at 16641 Jacinto Port Boulevard.
Rossler said the fire erupted at 6:45 a.m. and for several hours produced a dark and billowing cloud of soot that rose a mile and a half into the air. It was extinguished at about 11:30 a.m. with the help of 20 fire and foam trucks from local fire departments and an emergency team of Ship Channel industries.
"We train for things like this," Rossler said.
He said the worker nearest the initial explosion was several hundred feet away.
The burning tank contained about 30,000 barrels of residual fuel oil, an asphalt-like residue that is the byproduct of oil refining. Rossler said the fire primarily spewed carbon soot, which does not pose a health risk, into the air. He said state and federal environmental officials monitored the scene.
Rossler said there are no residential neighborhoods in the immediate area. He said about a dozen workers at his firm were sent off the premises for about 45 minutes but were allowed to come back when it was determined to be safe.
He said authorities believe a pipeline used to carry high-temperature residual fuel failed, and a fire started when nearby electrical lines were broken and sparked by the damaged pipeline. The residual fuel must be heated to 120 degrees for it to flow, he said. Rossler said he does not know what caused the pipe -- which is supposed to expand as it receives the heated fuel -- to fail.
He said the fire caused a nearby tank to ignite.
Fire crews quickly contained the fire to the tank, which did not collapse even though its roof caved in. About 10,000 to 15,000 barrels of the residual fuel were saved, he said.
Rossler said his company collects the residual fuel from various refineries and ships it to utility companies around the world that use it to produce electricity.
He estimated damage to the plant in the millions of dollars.
Rossler noted that his company, which has been in business 22 years, experienced a much smaller fire five or six years ago during construction of a tank.
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