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Texas City disaster 1947...

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Texas City Disaster 1947

1.1 Introduction : The texas city disaster has been called as the worst industrial disaster caused by human in the history of America and one of the largest non-nuclear explosions. The disaster took place on April 16, 1947 in Texas City’s port on Galveston Bay. Texas City was a large industrial complex of warehouses, chemical plants, and refineries. After World War II, the port used for storage ship transportation purposes. On April 1947, there was a mid-morning fire and explosions at 9.12 A.M. on board the French registered vessel – S.S. Grandcamp – which was docked in the port of Texas City and killed at least 581 people. The first explosion had killed twenty-six Texas City firemen and destroyed all of the city's firefighting equipment, including four trucks, leaving the city helpless in the wake of the second explosion. No central disaster organization had been established by the city, but most of the chemical and oil plants had disaster plans that were quickly activated. Although power and water were cut off, hundreds of local volunteers began fighting the fires and doing rescue work. American Red Cross personnel and other volunteers from surrounding cities responded with assistance until almost 4,000 workers were operating; temporary hospitals, morgues, and shelters were set up. The French-owned vessel, carrying explosive ammonium nitrate produced during wartime for explosives and later recycled as fertilizer, caught fire early in the morning, and while attempts were being made to extinguish the fire, the ship exploded. The entire dock area was destroyed, along with the nearby Monsanto Chemical Company, other smaller companies, grain warehouses, and numerous oil and chemical storage tanks. Smaller explosions and fires were ignited by flying debris, not only along the industrial area, but throughout the city. Fragments of iron, parts of the ship's cargo, and dock equipment were hurled into businesses, houses, and public buildings. A fifteen-foot tidal wave caused by the force swept the dock area. The concussion of the explosion, felt as far away as Port Arthur, damaged or destroyed at least 1,000 residences and buildings throughout Texas City. The ship SS High Flyer, in dock for repairs and also carrying ammonium nitrate, was ignited by the first explosion; it was towed 100 feet from the docks before it exploded about sixteen hours later, at 1:10 A.M. on April 17.

The texas city disaster has been called as the worst industrial disaster caused by human in the history of America and one of the largest non-nuclear explosions. The disaster took place on April 16, 1947 in Texas City’s port on Galveston Bay. Texas City was a large industrial complex of warehouses, chemical plants, and refineries. After World War II, the port used for storage ship transportation purposes. On April 1947, there was a mid-morning fire and explosions at 9.12 A.M. on board the French registered vessel – S.S. Grandcamp – which was docked in the port of Texas City and killed at least 581 people.

1.2 Causes of the Incident : On April 16,1947, America’s worst harbour explosion occurred in Texas City when the French ship Grandcamp,carrying ammonium nitrate fertilizer,caught fire and blew up and devasting the town. The blast occurred when a small fire, perhaps caused by a cigarette, broke out on the Grandcamp.Cigarette smoking, although officially banned, was a common practice by longshoremen on the docks.Just two days prior to the explosion , a cigarette had caused a fire on the docks .On the morning of April 16, smoke was spotted deep within one of the Grandcamp’s holds . The captain ordered the ship’s hatches to be shut to protect the cargo of ammonium nitrate from being destroyed by water.The decision caused the fire to grow larger and hotter until it caused the ammonium nitrate to explode . Some water and an extinguisher were used to fight the fire but hoses were not employed for fear of ruining the cargo there were already 2,300 tones loaded on the ship.While the ammunition was removed from the ship, the crew attempted to restricted oxygen to the hold in hopes of putting out the fire. Apparently,they did not realize that because of ammonium nitrate’s chemical composition it does not required in order to burn . By 9.00 a.m., flames had from the hold and within minutes it exploded .The blast was heard 150 miles away and was so powerful that the ship’s 1,5- tones achor was found two miles away. The force of the explosion lifted another ship right out of the water.People working at the docks were killed instantly. A nearby Monsanto chemical storage facility also exploded, killing 234 of the 574 workers there .A residential area of 500 homes was also levelled by the blast.Another ship The High Flyer , which was carrying similar cargo , was pushed completely across the harbour the crew fled when it comes to rest , failing to notice that a fire had started and next day their ship also exploded .Two people died . In all 581 people died and 3500 were imjured.The explosion caused $100 million in damages.

1.3 Impact toward Human : The Texas City disaster is generally comsidered the worst industrial accident in American history . Witness compared the scene to the fairly recent image of the 1943 air raid on Bari and the much larger devastion at Nagasaki.Of the dead,405 were identified and 63 have never been identified. These were placed in a memorial cementry in the north part of Texas City near Moses Lake.An additional 113 people were classified as missing , for no identifiable parts were ever found.This figure include firefighters who were aboard Grandcamp when she exploded.There is some speculation that there may have been hundreds more killed but uncounted, including visiting seamen,non-census labourer and their families, and an untold number of travelers.However,there were some survivors as close as 70 feet from the dock.

More than 5,000 people were injured with 1784 admitted to 21 area hospitals.More than 500 homes were destroyed and hundreds damaged leaving 2,000 homeless.The seaport was destroyed and many businesses were flattened or burried .Over 1,100 vehicles were damaged and 362 freight cars were obliterated –the property damage was estimated at $100 million ( equivalent to $ 1,100,000,000 in 2016 )

1.4 Impact of the Disaster toward Environment: Explosion of ammonia nitrate : 2NH4NO3

2N2 + 02 + 4H20

Nitrogen are nutrient that are natural parts of aquatic ecosystems and also the most abundant element in the air we breath. Nitrogen support the growth of algea and aquatic plants , which provide the food and habitat for fish, shellfish and smaller organisms that live in water. But as we know that, approximately 2,200 tones of ammonium nitrate was detonated.So we can imagine that how much the nitrogen gas was released. When to much nitrogen gas enter the environment –usually from a wide range of human activities where the air and water can become polluted. Nutrient pollution has impacted many stream , rivers,lakes, bays and coastal waters for the past several decades,resulting in serious environment and human health issues, and impacting the economy. Too much nitrogen in the water can cause algea to grow faster than ecosystem can handle.Significant increase in algea harm water quality,food resources and habitats, and decrease the oxygen that fish and other aquatic life need to survive .Large growth of algea

can called algal blooms and they can severely reduce or elimate oxygen in the water, leading to illness in fish and the death of large number of fish .Some algal blooms are harmful o humans because they produce elevated toxins and bacterial growth that can make people sick if they come into contact with polluted water, consume tainted or shellfish or drink contaminated water.

1.6 How to minimize the environment impact:

1.7 Prevention: The accident could be blamed on a wide range of failures, from mechanical to human to process, however, the entire accident could be put down to human error. It is said that what you measure is what you fix. The measurement method that we select in effect frames the nature of the problem that we want to understand. We have use OSHA recordable rate to measure workplace safety and health, the problem that needs fixing is too often the workers. The best way to counter behavioural safety program and blame culture as well as eliminate hazards is to create new ways to measure workplace safety and health. As an engineer in the board of direction, I would identify new ways to measure workplace safety and health. Possible new measure may include:            

Effectiveness of near miss and hazard reporting program Investigation of incident and near misses and sharing of lesson learned Equipment breakdown and reliance on breakdown maintenance Effectiveness of employee participation Completion of audit and investigation action items Levels of overtime worked Result of annual standardized surveys of employee perception of facility safety and health Fires, explosion , hazardous material released Completion of safety-related training Employee and contractor injuries and illness Compliance with work permit program requirements including LOTO, hot work and confined space entry Safety and health reviews of the procurement of equipment and materials

I would also ensure to take immediate step to avoid hazard to be occurred. a) Create dedicated parking space  Always know where vehicle on plot are b) Install disaster alert system  Train staff for disaster so that they will able to face abnormal situation c) Regular equipment inspection, due to cost cutting technique, less money was available to inspect and repair faulty equipment d) Install another set of high pressure alarm for the overhead pipes e) Design location based temperature detector f) Make sure a supervisor must always be present

g) Always follow recommend procedure

1.8 Conclusion In conclusion, the disaster at Texas City was completely preventable. Key immediate steps by operates on the day could have prevented the accident, however, the key cause of the disaster was a continuous failure to learn from near misses, an absence of safety culture, and persistent absence of hazard prevention by management staff, even after numerous near misses on numerous machines. Also misplaced priorities could be blamed for the disaster, as investments in safety and hazard prevention where not made following BP’s acquisition instead job cuts and poor maintenance culture which save BP hundreds of thousands of dollars where priority.

1.9 References: 1. U. S CHEMICAL SAFETY AND HAZARD INVESTIGATION BOARD INVESTIGATION REPORT EXPLOSION AND FIRE.Rep.no.1947-04-I-TX. Texas City: U.S CHEMICAL SAFETY AND HAZARD INVESTIGATION BOARD 2. ‘Texas City, Texas Disaster’. Fire Prevention and Engineering Bureau of Texas, April 29, 1947.Retrieved 2019-03-02 3. Stephen, Hugh W. (1997), Texas City Disaster, 1947 University of Texas Press, p-100, ISBN 0-292-77723-X 4. “Fire on the Grandcamp”. Moore Memorial Public Library. Retrieved 2019-03-02 5. The First Explosion-1947 Texas City Disaster. www.texascity-library.org 6. “Fertilizer explosion kills 581 in Texas –April 16, 1947-HISTORY.com 7. https://web.archive.org/web/20121015002843/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archi ve.mpl?id=1997_1406386 8. http://blogs.chron.com/bayoucityhistory/2010/04/newly_discovered_photos_show_extent _of_destruction_1.html 9. https://books.google.com/books?id=gO127UoMcmQC 10. https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/STATUTE-69/pdf/STATUTE-69-Pg707.pdf 11. https://web.archive.org/web/20070515090604/http://www.texascitylibrary.org/TCDisasterExhibit/index.html 12. https://web.archive.org/web/19980213082948/http://www1.chron.com:80/content/chronic le/metropolitan/txcity/index.html 13. Bing Jonathan (9 June 2009). ‘Cruise/Wagner spark to Fire’

14. https://athinkingperson.com/2010/06/17/1947-texas-city-disaster-and-its-effect-onindustrial-safety/...