Lessons from Harvey - IV

PART - I

PART - II

PART - III

Revisiting plant siting

Reasons for siting refineries on the coast are obvious. But they are sitting ducks for hurricanes. And if hurricanes and typhoons are likely to be more frequent we need a radical rethink. New refineries, not that many new ones are likely to be built, should be located inland. Existing refineries should consider erecting multiple barriers to avoid loss of containment.

One of the most horrific accidents in the aftermath of Harvey was the fire and explosion in a Peroxides plant. Peroxides are very unstable compounds and need to be stored under refrigeration. When the hurricane knocked out main power supply to the plant, the backup generators failed to start because they were submerged in water. Locating the generators at grade level was clearly a bad idea. But it appears bad only on hindsight. The company had refrigerated trucks to move out the Peroxides to a safer inland location. But by the time they decided to act, the roads were overwhelmed with water. The accident could have been totally avoided had the backup generators been located at a height beyond reasonable access of flood waters.

Post Script

Seismic zones are taken into account while designing structures in a chemical plant. Now that hurricanes are expected to become even more frequent than killer earthquakes, we need an improved system and response in place from design techniques to disaster management. Ironically, the response to Harvey was hampered by industries taking shelter under the fig-leaf of an anti-terrorism act, under which they were not obligated to disclose to authorities the nature and quantity of chemicals they stored in their premises.