Wednesday, February 25, 2015

WASHINGTON DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY: 9,600 GALLONS OF HYDROGEN PEROXIDE SPILLED FROM TANK AT PORT OF OLYMPIA






FEBRUARY 25, 2015

OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON

A recent chemical spill at the Port of Olympia was larger than first reported, according to state Department of Ecology documents obtained through a public records request.

The documents also shed light on the strength of hydrogen peroxide that spilled from a tank at the port’s marine terminal about noon on Jan. 28. 

The spill led to a large emergency response.  Several businesses within a quarter-mile of the marine terminal were evacuated; some employees were asked to stay indoors.

Hydrogen peroxide (a strong oxidant) is used in the port’s stormwater treatment process, re-introducing oxygen into the water before it is released into Budd Inlet.

The chemical was stored in a 10,000-gallon storage tank, not a 3,300-gallon tank, the documents show, which includes a report produced by state Department of Ecology spill responders.

Olympia Fire Department put out a news release following the spill, specifically stating that the leak emerged from a smaller-size tank.
Deputy Fire Chief Greg Wright said Wednesday that he couldn’t say exactly where the number came from, although it may have been a misunderstanding between fire and port officials.

The 10,000-gallon tank contained 9,600-gallons at the time of the spill: 5,000 gallons flowed into a concrete containment area, while another 4,600 gallons overflowed the containment area into the “rest of the building, and to the outside soil, pavement and stormwater catch basins,” according to the report.

The building that contains the tank also has floor drains that discharge into the sewer system that flows to the LOTT sewage treatment plant.

Once the chemical entered the sewer system, it generated white vapor clouds that could be seen rising from manhole covers.

Ecology spill responders and Olympia Fire agreed on a dilution plan at the time, so fire officials popped open a manhole and sprayed water into the sewage system.

As for the strength of the chemical, “research on 50 percent hydrogen peroxide solution found it was a strong oxidizer and corrosive,” according to the report.
Jim Sachet, a supervisor with spill response for Ecology’s Southwest Regional Office, added some details in a email. The email was included in the records request.

In addition to being a strong oxidizer, other hazards include “fire, explosion, inhalation and skin/eye contact,” he said.

Sachet added: “The cause of the leak is still under investigation.”

Port environmental programs director Alex Smith later added at a port commission meeting that a valve connected to the tank may have exploded.
No injuries were reported at the time of the spill, although Olympia resident Marcia Drake later stepped forward, saying she had been diagnosed with chemical pneumonitis at Providence St. Peter Hospital, following a lunchtime visit to the Italian restaurant Mercato on the day of the spill. Mercato is near the port.

Drake could not be reached on Wednesday.

Up next is a report by the industrial stormwater section of Ecology’s Water Quality Program. That is expected to be complete in early March, said Water Quality Industrial Unit Manager Steve Eberl. His department is awaiting the results of a second forensic investigation of the spill by an engineering company hired by the port.

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EXPLODING VALVE THOUGHT TO HAVE TRIGGERED RECENT LEAK AT PORT OF OLYMPIA

FEBRUARY 9, 2015  

Officials believe a recent chemical spill at the Port of Olympia was caused by an exploding valve on a storage tank filled with hydrogen peroxide, the port’s environmental programs director told the commission on Monday night.

The explosion was one of several details shared at the meeting about the Jan. 28 spill, which led to the evacuation of several businesses within a quarter mile of the port’s marine terminal.

The port has a new stormwater treatment plant, and hydrogen peroxide is used to re-introduce oxygen into the stormwater before it is released into Budd Inlet.
Environmental Programs Director Alex Smith told the commission that the port is set to hire an engineering firm this week. It will assess what happened, determine a specific cause and make recommendations to the port.

“I’m hoping within a month to get some answers,” Smith said.

She said it appeared that a valve connected to the 3,300-gallon tank had combusted, or exploded.

The hydrogen peroxide portion of the treatment system remains offline, she said, although the plant continues to treat stormwater.

The treatment plant serves the marine terminal, which is home to a large log yard.

Commissioner George Barner asked how hazardous hydrogen peroxide is and whether other hazardous chemicals are used by the port.
Smith said the port receives a diluted form of hydrogen peroxide. “I don’t believe the solution is designated ‘hazardous,’” she said.

As for other chemicals, which she didn’t name, they are kept in powder form, which presents less of a risk than they would in liquid form, Smith said.

The spill took place around noon Jan. 28. The chemical billowed up from the port and city streets in the form of white vapor.

The evacuation was largely handled by the Olympia Fire Department, which reported no injuries that day.

But Marcia Drake, 41, of Olympia, who contacted The Olympian on Sunday, said she wasn’t feeling well after the spill.

Drake had gone to lunch about noon that same day at Mercato’s, an Italian restaurant within the evacuation zone. She walked through some of the vapor on her way to the restaurant, she said.

Once inside, restaurant customers were told to stay indoors for about an hour, and then they left. An emergency responder told her to hold her breath as she ran to her car, she recalled.

The next day she went to the Westcare Clinic in Olympia for bronchial spasms and major irritation, possible burns in her nose and airways. By Saturday, she had gone to the emergency room at Providence St. Peter Hospital, where she said she was diagnosed with “chemical pneumonitis,” an inflammation of the lungs.

Following that, she missed a week of work, Drake said.
“Not sure where to report this but I am still not well,” she said Sunday.
Citing patient privacy rules, hospital spokesman Chris Thomas couldn’t confirm whether Drake had checked into the ER. But “chemical pneumonitis” is a legitimate diagnosis, he said.

Spokespersons for the Olympia Fire and Police departments said they weren’t aware of any first responders reporting respiratory problems.

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AREA AROUND PORT OF OLYMPIA MARINE TERMINAL EVACUATED FOLLOWING CHEMICAL SPILL

JANUARY 28, 2015  

Hydrogen peroxide gas forms a cloud as it rises from the sewage system as Olympia firefighters respond to a leak at the Port of Olympia on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2015. 

The Port of Olympia and businesses within a quarter mile of the port’s marine terminal were evacuated for about three hours Wednesday after a hydrogen peroxide spill sent plumes of steam billowing up from the port yard and city streets.

The chemical, which is used to treat stormwater at the port’s new facility, leaked from a 3,300 gallon storage tank that serves the facility.

About 20 port employees were evacuated before noon, and the area reopened after 3 p.m.

Port of Olympia staff, the state Department of Ecology and a private contractor were on scene late Wednesday to address the spill.

“The Department of Ecology will determine the severity of the spill and any adverse impacts to the marine area,” Olympia deputy fire chief Greg Wright said in a news release. “There are no drinking water concerns as the result of this spill. The white vapor seen issuing from the spill and stormwater system was vapor.”

Hydrogen peroxide can be harmful, said Krista Kenner, a spokeswoman for Ecology, adding that it can burn skin in certain concentrations. However, she wasn’t aware of the health concerns posed by hydrogen peroxide in vapor form.
Still, area organizations were prepared for the worst.

Thurston County Food Bank, which is not far from the port, put its evacuation response on standby, organizing employees into teams, said Robert Coit, executive director.

“Our biggest concern was that there was something that could cause respiratory challenges or discomfort,” he said.

The Hands On Children’s Museum did not evacuate because police and fire officials said the museum was outside the quarter-mile zone, spokeswoman Jillian Henze said.

Wright said that several businesses were asked to evacuate, while another six to eight were asked to shelter employees indoors.

Olympia Fire was assisted by Tumwater and Thurston County fire districts 3, 8 and 9. A hazmat team was dispatched from Pierce County. Olympia Fire also coordinated the response with Olympia Police, the city’s Public Works Department, the port, Ecology and the U.S. Coast Guard, according to the release.

The port’s $11.5 million stormwater treatment facility opened late last year
Source: www.theolympian.com