5/29/262 UPDATED using NFPA 30, Tables 22.4.1.5 and 22.4.1.1(b). It was brought to my attention that CA has more stringent requirements, so I have updated my post using NFPA 30, Chapter 22 – Storage of Ignitible (Flammable or Combustible) Liquids in Tanks — Aboveground Storage Tanks. My previous post was using IFC Tables.
Using Google Maps and Information from the Fire Authority dealing with the Methyl methacrylate (MMA) event in Garden Grove, CA, I was puzzled by the location of the MMA tank(s). We know at least one (1) of the tanks shown below is an MMA based on the news accounts, videos, and images. We don’t know what the other two tanks contain.
MMA is a Class 2 Unstable (Reactive) Flammable Liquid and would fall under Chapter 57 of the IFC. I am NOT sure what the CA Fire Code calls it or what the state requirements are; however, in my 20 years of working in CA, I have always found the state code to be more restrictive than the IFC. But this analysis is done using the IFC 2024.
Below, I use aerial imagery and the “Tables” from NFPA 30 to explain the “Safe Distances” based on this material and my curiosity about how these MMA Tank(s) were placed this close to the property line. I am sure this event will prompt a thorough “After Action Analysis” of the failures that led up to it, access to these tanks, and the distance to the property line(s).
NOTE: shutting down that rail spur will be an expensive insurance claim as every business on that spur has a “loss of business” claim, even if they are outside the EVAC zone.