Thursday, May 7, 2015

2 WORKERS KILLED BY EXPLODING UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANK IN HASTINGS, NEW YORK. IMPROPER VAPOR REMOVAL AND TANK CUTTING PROCEDURES TO BLAME









MAY 7, 2015

HASTINGS-ON-HUDSON, NY

Two people were killed Thursday in an explosion at a multifamily home in Hastings-on- Hudson.

Django Morrison, who identified himself as the home's owner, and Hastings police chief Anthony Visalli both said contractors were removing an old underground tank from the back of the home at 65 Hillside Ave. when it exploded at about 11:30 a.m., killing two workers.

They said there was no other immediate danger to the area.

A truck belonging to Three D Industrial Maintenance was parked at the house. A woman who tearfully answered the telephone at the Hawthorne company, run by John Dubbioso, said that the owner was at the scene but she had no additional information.

The home where the explosion occurred is across the street from Hastings High School and Farragut Middle School. School officials notified parents of the explosion but said students were unaffected.

District Clerk Jeanine Genauer said the two schools are in lockdown mode, meaning no one is allowed outside the building. Normally, middle school students go outside for recess and high school students can leave the building for lunch.

Genauer said the district will alert parents if the normally scheduled 2:45 p.m. dismissal is affected.

Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, who came to the scene after attending a nearby groundbreaking, said the force of the explosion threw the tank 75 feet into the air.

"There's a lot of questions - why it happened - unfortunately two people were killed," he said.

A neighbor, Kevin Ettinger, told The Journal News he was on his porch when he heard "a huge explosion, like nothing I've ever heard before."

He ran down a path behind the homes to the explosion scene.

"I saw where it landed," he said of the tank. "It was laying there crumpled. It was 50 yards away (from the excavation site) and on fire."

He said workers had been at the home all week and he could see the rectangular hole in the ground where the tank was being removed.


Another neighbor, Beth Fonfrias who lives on School Street, said her backyard has a clear view of the accident scene. She said she heard a "huge explosion ... probably the loudest noise I ever heard.... You could tell something serious happened."

She said she saw rescue personnel bring two stretchers behind the house but return with them empty.

Hillside Avenue and School Street remained closed Thursday afternoon while officials investigated the accident.

A crew from Consolidated Edison also was on scene but a spokesman, Sidney Alvarez, said gas and electric service were not involved.
 Source: foxnews.com/journalnews.com