What caused the 2019 TPC explosion? New report from Chemical Safety Board details 6,000 gallon butadiene leak
What caused the 2019 TPC explosion? New report from Chemical Safety Board details 6,000 gallon butadiene leak
In 50 seconds, about 6,000 gallons of liquid vapor, mostly butadiene, escaped a processing tower at the TPC plant in Port Neches. The explosion was 2 minutes later.
New information is being released about the explosion at the TPC plant in 2019.
The Chemical Safety Board released a new 13-page report detailing the timeline and what led up to the TPC explosion.
Nearly a year later, an attorney is calling this report a step forward.
Federal officials said about 6,000 gallons of liquid vapor, mostly butadiene escape one of the processing towers at the TPC plant in Port Neches. Two minutes later, the plant was on fire.
While the investigation into the explosion is not over, the report summarizes what happened before and after the explosion.
Once the investigation comes to an end, TPC will take actions to address any of the Chemical Safety Board’s concerns, a TPC spokesperson said in a statement.
“By and large, I think it’s what we expected,” Attorney Eric Newell said. Newell is an attorney with Brent Coon and Associates in Beaumont.
He said this CSB report confirmed what he and others have already been suspecting.
“One of the main things that we were gonna be looking at early one was the popcorning in the pipes,” Newell said.
The report discusses something called popcorn polymer, which can form in equipment when oxygen and butadiene react.
Eight days before the explosion, TPC installed temporary filters to catch any popcorn polymer chunks, according to the report.
“So the question that we’re going to be asking is, did they take steps to prevent it?” Newell said. “There are some additives that they can put in there that could have limited the popcorning.”
“While the CSB has been conducting its investigation, TPC already has begun implementing a comprehensive program to review its systems for identifying and mitigating butadiene hazards,” TPC spokesperson Sara Cronin said in an emailed statement Friday afternoon.
There are still many questions, but this report is a step forward, Newell said.
“It’s just a good starting point that confirms some of the suspicions that we had initially,” he said.
search
our offices
FROM THE BLOG
What to Do Immediately After a Truck Accident in Texas: A 24-Hour Timeline
What to Do After a Truck Accident in Texas A truck accident can change your life in seconds. The force of a commercial truck crash often leads to serious injuries, high medical bills, and lasting stress. Knowing what to do after a truck accident helps protect your health, preserve vital evidence, and support your claim…
Texas A&M donors’ lawsuit against 12th Man Foundation over Kyle Field seats and parking to proceed
By David Barron, Correspondent A Brazos County state district judge has cleared the way for a long-delayed trial showdown between a group of disillusioned Texas A&M donors and the A&M-affiliated 12th Man Foundation, stemming from a decade-old dispute over seating and parking rights at Kyle Field. State District Judge George Jerrell Wise on Wednesday signed an order denying a summary…
Lawsuit Against Texas A&M Aggies 12th Man Foundation Moves Forward
A legal showdown between former Texas A&M donors and the 12th Man Foundation will proceed at last. A Brazos County judge has ruled that a lawsuit between former Texas A&M Aggies donors and the 12th Man Foundation will move forward, David Barron of the Houston Chronicle reports. On Wednesday, State District Judge George Jerrell Wise…