Disasters

"A hydrofluoric acid leak from an oil refinery in Ohio last week sent a worker to the hospital and required the use of a 'water cannon' to disperse the poisonous gas, underscoring the potentially perilous nature of a chemical used at 50 refineries across the country."

"The California utility whose gas pipeline exploded last fall had rejected federal recommendations to install more automatic shut-off valves to help reduce the risks from a rupture and fire, an investigative panel was told Tuesday."

"The chief of security for Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch Mine lied to investigators and tried to destroy mine records, a grand jury has alleged in the first charges to come from a federal criminal probe of the April 2010 explosion that killed 29 coal miners."

"The new well will track one plugged after a moratorium. Obama administration officials say pressure from courts and Congress did not affect the decision, but that the firm met new safety rules."

Refinery workers and nearby communities are endangered by lax regulation and neglect of safety by companies that find it more profitable to buy political influence than repair or maintain equipment.

"Thousands of people living within four miles of the Bayer CropScience plant in Institute could have been exposed to potentially harmful levels of methyl isocyanate if the contents of an MIC tank located near an August 2008 explosion had been released, according to a government study obtained by the Gazette."

"NOAA will give high priority to an investigation into the large numbers of baby dolphin deaths along the Mississippi and Alabama coasts, an official told the Sun Herald on Wednesday."
 

Hydrofluoric acid is a deadly chemical used in many petroleum refinery operations. When it escapes, it becomes a gas that can race long distances and kill people who inhale it. Safer alternatives are available to refineries. At the urging of petrochemical companies, Congress and the executive branch have kept the dangers largely secret from the at-risk public, so there has been little pressure for refineries to make their operations safer. In a joint investigation the Center for Public Integrity and ABC News found that worst-case scenarios filed by just 50 refineries showed some 16 million Americans at risk from accidental or intentional hydrofluoric acid releases.

"Lawyers for Bayer CropScience are trying to convince a federal judge the company's Institute plant is safe, even as a federal agency that investigated the facility continues to call for more inspections before Bayer's controversial methyl isocyanate unit is allowed to resume production."

Rescuers struggled to reach victims trapped beneath rubble in the aftermath of a February 22 magnitude 6.3 earthquake that killed at least 75 people in Christchurch, New Zealand. Several hundred more are still missing.