This fatal anhydrous ammonia accident occurred in March 2016 at a seafood processing plant in Boston, MA. The Boston Fire Department (BFD) is one of the top fire departments in the United States. These radio communications are being shared as a “learning opportunity” for SAFTENG members. Not only is the radio traffic telling by the items discussed, the timeline is also telling. As I said the BFD is world-class by anyone’s standard and the fact that it took them nearly 30 minutes to get on site and affect a rescue is telling. There were a ton of unknowns that caused issues, but here are some key time stamps:
- first entry team in SCBA and Turn-Out Gear discovered the victim but could not affect rescue due to the chemical concentration overwhelming their PPE
- the command is informed of the NH3 on site (5,400 pounds or 1,048 gallons)
- first HAZMAT team could not affect the rescue, second entry team sent in
- victim recovery/rescue achieved (over 1 hour)
- another entry team and plan was being developed to stop the leak (e.g. find and close the “king valve”)
- Operations Leader request an additional 12 (one dozen) LEVEL A suits
SAFTENG Members CLICK HERE to listen to the traffic (LARGE file 38 MB .wav file)