The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is issuing this SAFETY ALERT (pdf) to notify the general public, emergency responders and shippers and carriers that recent derailments and resulting fires indicate that the type of crude oil being transported from the Bakken region may be more flammable than traditional heavy crude oil.
PHMSA is proposing to amend the Hazardous Materials Regulations applicable to the design, construction, certification, recertification and maintenance of cargo tank motor vehicles, cryogenic portable tanks and multi-unit tank car tanks (ton tanks) in response to petitions for rulemaking from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel
A facility that produces ultra pasteurized milk products failed to immediately notify federal and state emergency authorities of a chlorine gas release in 2012 at a milk facility in Portland, Oregon. By law, facilities are required to report hazardous releases to state and federal emergency response authorities in a timely manner. Eight employees, a truck
IBC Table 307.1(1)—Maximum Allowable Quantity per Control Area of Hazardous Materials Posing a Physical Hazard sets forth maximum allowable quantities for physical hazard materials. All three (3) situations (storage, use-closed, and use-open) are considered. For the specific case of gases, maximum allowable amounts are all listed under storage and use-closed because the definition of “Use”
The IFC and IBC are written based on the Maximum Allowable Quantity (MAQ) of the hazardous materials involved. Many will look at the tables and find their MAQ; however, the footnotes contain a lot of liberties that could quadruple the MAQs if certain designs are in place. Given this basic understanding of maximum allowable quantities
PHMSA and FRA are issuing this safety advisory as a follow-up to the agencies’ joint safety advisory published on August 7, 2013 and FRA’s Emergency Order No. 28 published that same day, both of which relate to the July 6, 2013, catastrophic accident in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec. In this safety advisory, PHMSA and FRA are reinforcing
Please join the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Homeland Security, Occupational Health and Safety Administration, and several other federal agencies including the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, for a series of listening sessions on Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security (Executive Order 13650 (EO). The first session will be held November 5 in Texas City,
On the 20th of October 2011 there was a traffic accident in Murcia (Spain) involving a Liquid Natural Gas tanker which resulted in the cargo exploding. This the second explosion of this type recorded in the World, following that which occurred in Tivissa (Spain) in 2002. The initial accident occurred when the tanker collided with
Many state fire marshal’s are starting to enforce barrier protection at propane tank exchange racks. We have seen these racks placed in some wild locations at gas stations and other retail businesses and to date no code or standard actually dictates their location. But there are applicable NFPA requirements, for the impact protection for these
This is one of those process safety questions: if 100 engineers were asked, you would NOT get the same answer from all 100. Although there may be other topics, this little fact would also hold true; this aspect of PSM is a critical path in process safety, so we need to get the FACTS on
A perfectly placed private security camera caught the exact moment when a fire broke out at a broken gas line in downtown Columbia Wednesday afternoon. The gas line was hit around 4 p.m. while a private contractor was digging to install underground communications lines near Richland and Sumter streets. SCE&G employees responded to the scene,
