Explosion of the Olephins II Unit at Formosa

Explosion of the Olephins II Unit at Formosa Plastics’ Point Comfort Plant in 2005 By Brett Smith Department of Chemical Engineering The University of Texas at Austin

Incident • • Valve knocked off on Olephins II Unit Flammable propylene leaked from valve Shut off valves remained open Vapor cloud ignited and caused an explosion

Impact • • • 1, 800 acre facility near Lavaca Bay 1, 400 employees and 400 contractors 13, 000 nearby residents Explosion injures 12 workers Fire rages for five days

Thesis Statement Formosa Plastics failed to adequately assess the hazards of operating the Olephins II unit and put their employees in unnecessary danger of bodily harm.

Questions 1. Did the design of the Olephins II unit cause or intensify the incident. 2. Was Formosa Plastics violating any laws or regulations governing the design of the Olephins II unit? 3. Was Formosa Plastics negligent in their Personal Protection Equipment requirements? 4. What Personal Protection Equipment was Formosa required to provide to employees working in and around the Olephins II unit? 5. Did the safety culture and mindset of employees operating in and around the Olephins II unit play a role in causing the incident?

References Sissell, K. (2006, December 20). Workers File Lawsuit over Formosa's Texas Blast. Chemical Week, 168(43), 27 -27. Retrieved October 8, 2008, from Academic Search Complete database. Fire at Formosa Plastics Corporation: Evaluating process hazards. (n. d. ). Retrieved October 8, 2008, from http: //www. csb. gov/index. cfm? folder=completed_investigations&page=info&INV_ID= 55 OSHA Regional news release. (2006, April 5). Retrieved October 8, 2008, from http: //www. osha. gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp. show_document? p_table=NEWS_RELEA SES&p_id=12120 Stanley, J. W. (1995, August 10). Guidelines for the enforcement of the apparel standard. Retrieved from http: //www. osha. gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp. show_document? p_table= INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=21878