Injuries Reported in Freeport Chem Plant Explosion

Sept. 13, 2002
By S.K. BARDWELL

A railcar containing ammonia and two other chemicals exploded at the BASF chemical plant along Highway 332 in Freeport this morning, rattling buildings and homes up to 50 miles away, local police reported.

All nonessential workers at the 500-acre BASF production plant were evacuated, said Sharon Rogers, BASF spokeswoman, but essential workers remained indoors at the plant. All employees and contractors have been accounted for, she said. There are 800 employees at the Freeport production facility.

Rogers said four BASF worker injuries were reported, all of them minor, along the lines of cuts and scrapes.

Brazoria schools are sheltering in place because of possible ammonia gas clouds. Area residents are being advised to stay indoors, turn off their air conditioners and place wet towels under doorways.

All major roads leading into Freeport were closed by roadblocks immediately after the incident, but were re-opened by 12:10 p.m., said Captain Gary Bake, emergency management officer for Freeport.

AMMONIA GAS

A cloud of ammonia gas can be deadly because the chemical can severely burn a person's airways, interfering with the ability to breathe.
As the gas cloud drifts, it may dilute to the point that it is nothing more than a minor irritant to the airways and eyes, said Houston EMS medical director Dr. David Persse.

If the gas thins out and mixes with air, emergency management officials will advise residents to stay indoors until the danger passes.

If the cloud remains dense, officials will order an evacuation of the area. Persse said residents should drive away from the cloud, not through it.

However, the area remained under a "Level 3" gas release alert, meaning fumes could go beyond the plant and into the city.

All Freeport residents were still being advised to stay indoors with air conditioning turned off early this afternoon, Bake said. "We do not have an all-clear (but) people are moving about already," Bake said.

The explosion apparently was felt by people living at least 50 miles away, rocked buildings, knocked out power and sent people scrambling in a panic.

"It just sounded like the city blew up," Lake Jackson resident Earlene Wright told TV station KTRK-TV in Houston.

At Sarah's Convenience Store, a major gathering place for plant workers across the street from the BASF plant, the impact sent cartons of cigarettes spilling from overhead shelves and caused ceiling tiles to ripple and collapse.

Store employees said an estimated 150 to 200 workers in hard hats came sprinting across the highway from the plant to the store in the wake of the explosion.

Many of the workers were covered in sweat and panting from the heat and store employees took cold water and cigarettes out to them.

With Sept. 11 having just passed and news of a possible bombing attempt coming out of Miami, several bystanders immediately thought of terrorism.

HOW TO SHELTER IN PLACE

• Go inside/stay calm. If your eyes, nose or throat become irritated, protect by covering your mouth and nose with several layers of damp cloth and take frequent shallow breaths.

• Turn off the A/C or heater. Close all windows and doors. Do not use the fireplace. Close the fireplace damper. Use tape to seal cracks or openings around doors and windows. This will provide more protection.

• Tune in to your local emergency radio or television station. Emergency information will be given by local officials over radio and television. For the Harris County area tune to AM 740 KTRH for emergency information.

• Use the telephone for emergencies only. Do not use the phone unless necessary. For emergencies dial 911. For information on the chemical emergency you may call (281) 476-CAER (2237). This number has been established by local industry to keep citizens informed of activities and emergencies at local chemical facilities.

"I thought, honestly, when it first happened it was a terrorist attack, so close to the plant. We were actually stunned," said Betty Rodgers, a clerk at Sarah's. "Being a chemical plant I thought, `Oh my God, no.' "

Relatives of plant workers were calling the convenience store frantically, seeking information on what happened.

"People were calling us wanting to know where their husbands were," Rodgers said. "I'm worried about the guys over there. They're our customers, and we see them every day, and we care about them."

B.J. Warwick, owner of BJ's Bargain Corner down the street from the plant, said she also thought of terrorism.

"I thought a bomb had hit, with 9-11 (just having passed). I thought, `Oh my God, they got us,' " Warwick said.

Warwick said her store had just opened for business when she felt the first explosion around 9:30 a.m. and ran outside. She saw large fireballs in the air, then saw a second explosion.

"The whole building just shook," said employee Brenda Pogue, a clerk at BJ's.

"God, it was such an explosion. We've never been in an earthquake but now we know what an earthquake feels like," Pogue said.

The impact shook the Clute Police Department building down the street and knocked out power briefly before an emergency generator kicked in.

"When we first pulled up here, flames were 50 to 60 feet in the air from the explosion," said Clute police Lt. John Langley.

There were also reports the impact knocked out the front windows of the Brazosport Chamber of Commerce offices across the street from the plant, Langley said.

Officials ordered other plants in the area locked down because of air quality concerns. Reports also indicate that residents along Slaughter Road are being told to stay inside their homes because of the air quality.

Emergency officials are checking wind direction to see which, if any, residential areas could be affected by the blast. For now, residents are being asked to "shelter in place," which means stay indoors.

Charlotte Zwahr said she lives 20 miles from the BASF plant, located at 602 Copper Road in Freeport, and heard and felt the explosion. Minutes later, Zwahr said, her husband, a driver for Service Transport who was inside the plant at the time of the explosion, called to say the plant was being evacuated.

Zwahr said a cloud of white smoke was seen over the plant first, then the explosion occurred, and then clouds of black smoke appeared.

Clute police officers said they were deluged with reports of the explosion from area residents who believed it came from the BASF plant, but had not yet been able to reach anyone at the plant.

Freeport Mayor James Barnett said lights flickered at city hall. He had no other information.

"We have a reported explosion at BASF," he said. "That's about all I know at this point."

A BASF security employee who answered a phone at the company today declined to comment on what was happening.

"We have an emergency going on that we have to take care of," she said.

BASF is a German chemical corporation, Europe's largest, and employees about 15,000 at plants in North America.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/topstory2/1573517