MARCH 7, 2015
ALEXANDER, NORTH DAKOTA
An oil treatment/recover/disposal site just south of
Williston exploded early this morning.
The site is located at 14391 39th Street NW, Alexander, ND 58831
(McKenzie County). It is licensed to
treat/recover liquid waste, crude oil and related material, including
radioactive material collection and transport.
The destroyed facility is located very close to Missouri River.
McKenzie County Emergency Manager Karolin Rockvoy says
firefighters from Williston and Alexander got the call about the blaze around
3:30 AM.
She says the fire was so large, that they had to just stand
back and watch it burn itself out.
She says the flames were under control around 9 AM.
No injuries have been reported but there were 5 people
working on scene at the time of the explosion.
She says the site is owned by Tervita (a Canadian company)
and that it is completely destroyed.
Tervita, LLC (the US-based subsidiary of Tervita Corporation) was
recently (February 13, 2015) acquired by Republic Services (a leading
environmental services company in the US).
So much for environmental protection; this explosion and fire just
polluted the land and air with oil and potentially radioactive material as it
was licensed to collect and transport radioactive material.
Source: www.kxnet.com
The North Dakota Health Department lists this site as
licensed to collect and transport radioactive material.
They are still unsure of what caused the fire at this time,
however all it takes is a spark at these oil waste treatment/recovery/disposal
sites. We have seen quite a few explosions and fires
at brine disposal sites, wastewater holding tanks, etc. The reason is that all the oily wastewater , sludge,
etc. do contain petroleum constituents that are highly flammable that would
explode should they are allowed to accumulate at sufficient quantities. Most of the time a vent valve is not
functioning properly, or there is no maintenance or insufficient maintenance or
a flame during the harsh winter months.
During tighter economic times, people always cut down on operation and
maintenance, resulting in explosions and fires like this one.
//--------------------------------------------/
A fire so massive that it could not be approached by
firefighters erupted after an explosion at an oil waste disposal site north of
Alexander, North Dakota.
According to KXNews, McKenzie County Emergency Manager
Karlin Rockvoy said the only thing to do at first was watch the fire burn
itself out.
The explosion occurred at approximately 3:30 a.m. Emergency
responders from both Williston and Alexander established a perimeter around the
site to ensure the safety of anyone in the area. Five employees at the facility
escaped unharmed, one of whom reported jumping out of the way just in time.
Firefighters were able to get the flames under control by
mid-morning, though the cause of the explosion is still unknown. It only takes a spark or a source of flame to
set the accumulated petroleum vapors into explosion or fire. There are many sources of heat during the
winter months when people try to cope with the harsh weather conditions.
The complex, which undertook the treatment and disposal of
oilfield waste, was completely destroyed during the incident. According to the
Bismarck Tribune, Rockvoy reported that any damage caused by the explosion was
contained by a surrounding embankment.
Of course they cannot make the same claim regarding the massive air
pollution they caused.
The waste treatment/disposal site was owned by Tervita, a
company which specializes in dealing with industrial waste while focusing on
environmentally conscious solutions. The North Dakota Health Department lists this
site as licensed to collect and transport radioactive material.
The facility was operated by Republic Services, which
recently acquired Tervita, LLC, a subsidiary of Tervita Corporation. The merger heightened Republic Services’
presence in the oil and gas waste sector.
I guess they do not know what they are doing or they do not know what risk
they are dealing with, if we judge them from this catastrophe and the massive
air pollution they caused.