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Explosion at Port Neches Chemical Plant Injures 8 in Texas Texas Explosion at Port Neches Chemical Plant Forces Evacuation
(30 minutes later)
PORT NECHES, Texas — An explosion at a chemical plant in southeastern Texas early on Wednesday injured at least eight people, shattered the windows of nearby homes and forced residents near the site to flee as orange flames shot into the sky. An explosion at a chemical plant in southeastern Texas early on Wednesday injured at least three people and forced the evacuation of residents within half a mile of the site, a statement from the plant and a spokeswoman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said.
The blast happened just before 1 a.m. at the Texas Petroleum Chemical plant in Port Neches, east of Houston, when about 30 people were working at the plant. Two employees and a contractor were injured; all were treated and released from the hospital later in the morning, Troy Monk, the company’s director of health, safety and security, said at a news conference. Five residents were injured by flying glass, according to the Jefferson County Office of Emergency Management. The injured, who were not named but identified as “personnel” from the plant, were taken to hospitals.
The blast at the Texas Petroleum Chemical plant in Port Neches, near Groves, east of Houston, was reported around 1 a.m. Wednesday, according to a company statement.
The blast shook residents awake and turned the night sky orange with fire. It was not clear what caused the explosion, which happened in an area of the plant that processes butadiene, a colorless gas used in the production of synthetic rubber and other products. It blew out the windows of buildings miles away and turned the night sky orange with fire, according to witnesses and images posted on social media. The cause of the explosion was not immediately clear, but the company said that it had involved a “a processing unit.”
In Port Neches, a city of about 13,000, residents described the bewilderment and fear of waking up to a blast and the sight of flames. “The event is ongoing,” the statement from the plant said, “but will be brought under control as quickly and safely as possible.” It added that the focus was on protecting the public and emergency workers, and “minimizing any impact to the environment.”
“I thought I was dreaming,” said Kym Johns, 48, whose home is separated from the plant only by a street and a vacant field. Her garage doors caved in. Sheetrock fell to the floor. A neighbor was blown out of his chair, she said. The explosion was reported in the predawn hours in the Port Neches-Groves area of Texas, which is home to multiple chemical plants. The blast is one in a list of chemical explosions or fires in recent years at plants cloistered in areas of oil-friendly Texas that have renewed concerns about health and safety regulations, and effects on the environment.
She and her husband, Daren, fled their home, but they returned later in the morning to pack up some things, trying to avoid breathing in the thick, black smoke that was pouring out of the plant. “Right now, I’m scared to breathe the air,” she said.
Regina Marple lives about 30 minutes’ drive from the plant, but was still shaken awake by the explosion.
“It scared me and I jumped up,” Ms. Marple, 34, said. “I’ve never experienced an earthquake, but that’s what I thought it would be like.”
Her husband was working at a different plant in Port Neches at the time of the explosion, and Ms. Marple did not immediately know where the explosion had occurred. She texted him but did not hear back right away. After 15 long minutes, he called her, relieving her worst fears.
“I don’t think I took a good breath until I knew he was safe,” she said.
The explosion started a fire that burned unchecked into the day on Wednesday. At about 2 p.m., as wind continued to blow smoke from the plant, another explosion sent a ball of fire and fractured equipment into the air. Earlier, officials said the fire was too dangerous to safely approach, so they were instead dousing equipment with water and isolating parts of the plant by cutting off a pipeline.
“I don’t think the focus is really on putting the fire out, it’s letting the materials that are in there burn themselves out and keeping the surrounding tanks cool,” Jeff Branick, a judge in Jefferson County who also works in the county’s Office of Emergency Management, said at the morning news conference.
Mayor Glenn Johnson of Port Neches said he had been awakened by the blast, which damaged his home. He lives in the area close to the plant that has been evacuated.
“I understand what getting blown out of bed means now, because you’re up quick,” Mr. Johnson said.
The city is home to several chemical plants. Mr. Johnson praised Texas Petroleum Chemical for the company’s fast response and cooperation with local officials.
“They’ve always been very good to the city, and we appreciate them, so our hearts go out to them as well,” Mr. Johnson said at a news conference.
There have been several chemical explosions or fires in recent years at plants clustered in areas of oil-friendly Texas, renewing concerns about the adequacy of health and safety regulations and about environmental effects from the accidents.
Earlier this year, a disastrous fire burned for days at a petrochemical facility on the outskirts of the Houston metropolitan area. It was followed by another blaze at a chemical plant northeast of Houston that left one person dead and two others critically injured.Earlier this year, a disastrous fire burned for days at a petrochemical facility on the outskirts of the Houston metropolitan area. It was followed by another blaze at a chemical plant northeast of Houston that left one person dead and two others critically injured.
A deadly explosion in 2013 at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas — one of the worst industrial disasters in Texas history — was powerful enough to register as a magnitude 2.1 earthquake, and nearly obliterated an entire neighborhood. In 2016, federal officials found that the fire had been intentionally set. A deadly explosion in 2013 at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas — one of the worst industrial disasters in Texas history — was powerful enough to be registered as a magnitude 2.1 earthquake, nearly obliterating an entire neighborhood. In 2016, federal officials ruled that the fire had been intentionally set.
Another plant, owned by a French chemicals company, exploded in 2017 in Crosby, about 30 miles northeast of downtown Houston, when the city was ravaged by a tropical depression.Another plant, owned by a French chemicals company, exploded in 2017 in Crosby, about 30 miles northeast of downtown Houston, when the city was ravaged by a tropical depression.
Crystal Holmes, a spokeswoman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, said that it would take time to evaluate whether the Port Neches fire was “a natural or man-made disaster.” Crystal Holmes, the spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office, said that it would take time to evaluate whether the Port Neches fire was “a natural or man-made disaster.” “It looks, just visually, about half of the refinery is on fire,” she said.
“It looks, just visually, about half of the refinery is on fire,” Ms. Holmes said early on Wednesday. The facility, which has more than 175 full-time employees, according to the Texas Petroleum Chemical Group website, stretches across 218 acres and produces butadiene, a colorless gas, and raffinate, a fuel product. The combined production capacity for the plant is more than 900 million pounds per year, the manufacturer said on its website.
Mr. Monk, the chemical company’s safety director, said that the large plumes of smoke from the fire might cause respiratory irritation for people nearby. The group said all plant workers had been evacuated, and emergency management officials also ordered the evacuation of residents nearby.
“You don’t want to be downwind from this,” he said. Ms. Holmes said search-and-rescue crews were going door-to-door to surrounding houses, where some residents had reported damage from the blast.
The facility has about 175 full-time employees and 50 contractors, and spreads across 218 acres of land. All of the employees were accounted for shortly after the explosion, Mr. Monk said. In addition to butadiene, the plant also produces raffinate, a refining byproduct used to make other chemicals. The combined production capacity for the plant is more than 900 million pounds per year, the manufacturer said on its website. “We’re not quite sure if we have citizens trapped in their houses,” she said.
Search-and-rescue crews had gone door-to-door in the surrounding neighborhood, Ms. Holmes said.
Jared Abshire, who lives with his family less than a mile from the plant, said in a Facebook message on Wednesday, “It woke us up, sounded like a train coming through the house.”Jared Abshire, who lives with his family less than a mile from the plant, said in a Facebook message on Wednesday, “It woke us up, sounded like a train coming through the house.”
Mr. Abshire, 39, a production specialist at Motiva Enterprises, an oil refinery in Port Arthur, said that he and his family had evacuated their house. Mr. Abshire, 39, a production specialist at Motiva Enterprises, an oil refinery in Port Arthur, said that he and his family had evacuated their home after the explosion at the plant, which is next to a residential area.
Ms. Marple said her husband, Kristopher Marple, came home from his job at the neighboring plant and went to sleep. She said she was thanking God that he and the other plant workers in the city were all alive. “Say some prayers, TPC has had several explosions and is completely on fire,” Mr. Abshire wrote in his Facebook post.
“It really brings home the dangers they go through every day,” she said. Scorching, glowing orange flames could be seen raging at the plant, according to a video Mr. Abshire shared on Facebook. Multiple videos and images on social media showed large flames reaching into the sky.
Margaret Toal reported from Port Neches, Texas, and Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs from New York. Iliana Magra contributed reporting from London, and Daniel Victor from Hong Kong. One plant employee suffered a broken arm, while another sustained burns and had to be evacuated by air ambulance, Jeff Branick, the Jefferson Country judge, said by phone on Wednesday on behalf of the Office of Emergency Management. The third was treated at a hospital and released, he added, and there were no fatalities.
The Nederland Volunteer Fire Department said in a Facebook post that there was a mandatory evacuation was in place “for everyone within a ½ mile of the TPC plant in Port Neches.” The department added, “This could change and expand to a greater area.”
Mr. Abshire said that though explosions in “this type of industry” have happened before, a blast of this magnitude was rare.
“It has happened,” he said, but “it is not common at all.”