WORKER STRUCK HIS HEAD AFTER FALLING 18-FEET FROM A LEDGE IN BARRIE, ONTARIO. HE IS IN CRITICAL CONDITION.

WORKER STRUCK HIS HEAD AFTER FALLING FROM A LEDGE IN BARRIE, ONTARIO. HE IS IN CRITICAL CONDITION.

A construction worker sustained critical head injuries after falling about 18 feet at the Little Lake Health Centre today. 

The building is under construction at 35 Little Lake Drive. 

“As a result of the head injuries, they had to airlift him down to the GTA,” Barrie Police Const. Sarah Bamford said. 

The man, who is in his 50s, fell at about 1:45 p.m., Bamford said. 

Police determined the worker fell off of a ledge and struck his head, sustaining substantial injuries from his fall.    

He was taken by ambulance to Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre before being airlifted to the Toronto area. 

The Ministry of Labour is investigating the incident. 

Bamford could not say if the worker was wearing safety equipment.

GAS GENERATOR BLAMED FOR DAMAGING WAILUKU HOUSE FIRE

GAS GENERATOR BLAMED FOR DAMAGING WAILUKU HOUSE FIRE

A mishap with a gas generator caused a fire that caused extensive damage to a Wailuku home Sunday afternoon, according to a Maui County Fire Department report.

Flames could be seen coming through the roof of the home when Maui firefighters from Wailuku and Kahului arrived at 60 Wilikona Place following the 4:38 p.m. alarm.

Firefighters brought the fire at the single-story, 2,600-square-foot home under control at 5:32 p.m.

Two people home at the time of the fire escaped without injuries.

3 firefighters were electrocuted fighting Hutchinson, Kansas house fire

3 firefighters were electrocuted fighting Hutchinson, Kansas house fire

HUTCHINSON, Kansas – Hutchinson fire crews responded to a fire Sunday afternoon in the 400 block of Liberty Street. When units arrived, heavy smoke was pouring from the home.

The fire was controlled in about 20 minutes, and the fire was ruled undetermined. 

There were two people in the home at the time of the fire, neither was injured. Three fire fighters received minor electrical shocks while fighting the fire, and all refused treatment at the scene. 

The occupants of the home denied assistance from Red Cross.

SEMI TRUCK FIERY ACCIDENT CLOSES STATE ROUTE 303 NEAR AKRON PENINSULA ROAD IN OHIO

SEMI TRUCK FIERY ACCIDENT CLOSES STATE ROUTE 303 NEAR AKRON PENINSULA ROAD IN OHIO

Published: January 19, 2015 3:07PM 

UPDATE WITH NEWS ROAD BACK OPEN

Boston Heights police department, Peninsula Police Department and Valley Fire responded to an accident on state Route 303 near Akron Peninsula Road at 2:06 p.m. Monday afternoon involving a semi truck that is on fire and another vehicle, according to Richfied police tweets @RichfieldPolice.

Because of the accident state Route 303  between state Route 8 and Akron Peninsula Road was closed until 4:30 p.m. according to an Ohio Department of Transportation email sent Monday afternoon.

ANOTHER TEENAGER DEAD BECAUSE HE REFUSED TO WEAR A SEAT BELT. STIGLER, OK TEENAGER INJECTED FROM HIS PICKUP TRUCK AND KILLED IN WRECK WITH SEMI TRUCK. BUCKLE UP, SEAT BELTS DO SAVE LIVES.

ANOTHER TEENAGER DEAD BECAUSE HE REFUSED TO WEAR A SEAT BELT. STIGLER, OK TEENAGER INJECTED FROM HIS PICKUP TRUCK AND KILLED IN WRECK WITH SEMI TRUCK.  BUCKLE UP, SEAT BELTS DO SAVE LIVES.

Posted: Jan 19, 2015 7:15 PM EST Updated: Jan 19, 2015 7:15 PM EST

HASKELL COUNTY, Oklahoma -

A Stigler teen was killed in a three-vehicle crash Monday in Haskell County. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says the fatality wreck took place around 8 a.m. on State Highway 19 just east of Whitefield.

The 16-year-old victim was driving a pickup eastbound on the highway when his truck crossed the center line and hit a semi truck in the side, according to OHP.

The teenage driver, who was not identified due to his age, was thrown from the truck and killed. He was not wearing a seat belt. A 12-year-old male passenger, who was also not belted in, was flown to a Tulsa hospital.

He is said to be stable with head injuries, a trooper's report states.

The semi truck driver was not injured. A third vehicle hit debris from the wreck, and that driver refused treatment at the scene.

ARE WE EFFECTIVELY MANAGING THE RISK POSED BY NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION, TRANSMISSION, PROCESSING AND STORAGE?

ARE WE EFFECTIVELY MANAGING THE RISK POSED BY NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION, TRANSMISSION, PROCESSING AND STORAGE?

 

An unexplained blast last year week at a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in rural Washington state, which injured workers, forced an evacuation and raised alarm about a potentially large second explosion, could focus attention on the risk of storing massive gas supplies near population centers.

On a daily basis we read or hear about gas lines breaking by construction crews, leaks, fires, explosions and so on. There is no question that we have had numerous, numerous close calls from gas line leaks, breaks or ruptures.

 

As far as the incident at Williams Co Inc’s massive gas storage site, the gas industry have portrayed it as a rare safety-record blemish among the dozens of U.S. LNG plants and storage sites, including towering tanks in packed neighborhoods of New York City, and near Boston.

Energy industry experts and opponents of new LNG plants alike said it may spur debate about safe handling of gas for cities increasingly reliant on the clean-burning fuel. At least a dozen new U.S. LNG export facilities are seeking government approval, and some have faced opposition on safety grounds.

Early Monday, a “processing vessel” at the Williams facility near the small town of Plymouth, Washington, exploded, spraying chunks of shrapnel as heavy as 250 pounds as far as 300 yards, according to local emergency responders.

The flying debris pierced the double walls of a 134-foot LNG tank on site, causing leaks. Five workers were injured, and local responders warned that vapors from the leaks could trigger a more devastating, second explosion. A county fire department spokesman said authorities were concerned a second blast could level a 0.75 mile “lethal zone” around the plant.

Everyone within a two-mile radius of the site was evacuated, and a bomb-squad robot was deployed to snap photos of the damaged tank to avoid putting workers at further risk. Some who did approach were reportedly sickened by fumes.

By late Tuesday residents were allowed to return and responders said the risk of a secondary explosion had been averted. Williams is investigating the incident alongside government agencies. What caused the explosion is not clear.

“This type of event raises the public’s realization that we’re dealing with a combustible commodity,” said Teri Viswanath, a natural gas market strategist at BNP Paribas in New York. “We take a lot of precautions in the industry to avoid them, but they do infrequently occur.”  We believe that the increase in the number of LNG plants will also bring an increase in the number of explosions and deadly incidents.  It is not a matter of if, but when and how many explosions.

To the risk of LNG plant explosion we must also add the several LNG tanker truck accidents and explosions and deaths and property damage.  They are a regular occurrence in our highways and roads.  We should emphasize that the close calls are significantly higher than the number of fires or explosions.

U.S. consumption of natural gas rose 12 percent between 2008 and 2013, fueled in part by the strong endorsement of the cheaper and cleaner-burning fuel by the administration of President Barack Obama. New shale drilling has also led to record natural gas output.
But delivering fuel safely is no small task. Concerns about gas distribution adds to controversy around oil shipments in railcars after recent fiery derailments, fertilizer plant safety following last year’s West Texas disaster, and reports about the U.S. power grid’s vulnerability to sabotage.

The blast in Washington came a day after utility PG&E Corp was hit with federal criminal charges for alleged safety lapses in a deadly 2010 gas pipeline explosion in California, and weeks after a building in Manhattan was razed by a natural gas explosion, killing eight.
Stephen Maloney, a senior risk consultant at Moody’s Analytics with a background in LNG risk analysis, said the Washington incident could trigger a review of the risks posed by LNG facilities, including a fresh look at the probable frequency of accidents. Companies and regulators use risk models when considering permitting projects.

“While notable, the Plymouth event was not especially severe,” Maloney said. “But, when you are dealing with very low frequency events, even for an event of limited severity, one data point has the potential to really change statistics.”

Unlikely Scenario
To be sure, industry experts say U.S. LNG plants have a nearly spotless safety record.
At the Washington facility, Williams cools gas to around minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit, making it non-flammable. Leaked LNG would likely vaporize and dissipate, posing little explosion risk, several experts said. But vapors that are contained in a closed space or gather into a cloud could ignite.

“It’s a very unlikely scenario,” said Kent Bayazitoglu, an LNG expert with the Gebler & Associates consultancy in Houston, adding gasoline is a riskier fuel.

Companies hoping to build new U.S. LNG plants and other LNG facilities say safety technology, including containment dams around storage tanks, has improved in recent years.

“LNG is safer than many of the gases we use every day,” said Darren Seed, vice president of investor relations at Westport Innovations Inc, which is currently working with seven engine manufacturers to design LNG-powered trucks and locomotives.

Most proposed LNG export plants would also be located far from population centers, reducing the risks from an incident.

But others cite what they say are red flags. A 2009 report by the U.S. Congressional Research Service warned that LNG spills can unleash explosive vapor clouds. A 2004 blast at an Algerian LNG facility killed 27 workers and injured many more.

Ted Gleichman, of the Sierra Club’s national team on natural gas, said it is also “insane” to place LNG facilities on the earthquake-prone U.S. West Coast after the 2011 disaster at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant.

“This tragic fire in Washington State demonstrates these facilities are inherently dangerous,” he said.

Tanks Loom Large In Cities
LNG export terminals can be far more complex than the Williams facility in Washington, a so-called “peak-shaving” site designed to store LNG to meet spikes in domestic gas demand. There are 59 U.S. peak-shaving facilities, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). For an EIA map, click here.

Many peak shaving sites are located in or near major cities like Atlanta, Boston or New York.

National Grid operates two giant 1960s-era tanks in Brooklyn. Another New York site, operated by Con-Ed sits near La Guardia Airport in Queens. More than 722,000 people lived within two miles of the two sites during the 2010 Census, according to a Reuters analysis of data compiled by the Minnesota Population Center. (GRAPHIC)
“It’s not a question of should we or shouldn’t we have this infrastructure,” said Henry Willis, director of the RAND Corp’s Homeland Security and Defense Center. “It’s a question of … are we taking the right steps in terms of engineering requirements, oversight, and safety inspections to have confidence we are effectively managing the risk.”

The New York tanks are double-walled, equipped with alarms, and other safety features, and the sites have never suffered a major incident. They are overseen by several government agencies and have detailed emergency response plans, operators said.
Dozens of other LNG storage tanks dot New England, many of which are supplied by the giant GDF Suez-operated Everett Terminal two miles from downtown Boston. The Everett hub has received more than 1,000 LNG cargoes since opening in 1971, and includes peak-shaving storage.

GDF Suez said it will monitor the findings of an investigation into this week’s Washington State accident.

Repairs worth $69M ongoing at Williams Northwest Pipeline's liquefied natural gas plant in Plymouth, Washington

A white cloud of natural gas vents from the Williams Northwest Pipeline liquefied natural gas plant on March 31, 2014 after an explosion ruptured one of the facilities storage tanks near Plymouth, Wash.

Work is ongoing to repair the damage at Williams Northwest Pipeline's Plymouth facility, though some operations have already resumed.

Federal investigators still aren’t sure what caused last year’s explosion that injured five workers at a liquefied natural gas plant in Plymouth, Washington, though repairs are underway to bring the facility back to full operation.

Williams Northwest Pipeline, which owns the plant, is spending $69 million to repair damages on site, including a large storage tank punctured by shrapnel in the explosion shortly before 8:20 a.m. on March 31, 2014.

Natural gas from the damaged tank was emptied and transferred into a second undamaged tank, where it remains available for customers during peak wintertime demand. Michele Swaner, a spokeswoman for Williams Northwest based in Salt Lake City, said the damaged tank should be fixed by April and full operations resumed at the plant by November.

The Plymouth facility — located across the Columbia River from Umatilla — is used for storing of natural gas off the main Northwest pipeline. Gas is cooled into a liquid state at minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit, and held in the identical tanks until needed elsewhere throughout the region. Both tanks are capable of holding up to 14 million gallons of material.
With approximately 3,900 miles of transmission pipe, the Williams Northwest Pipeline is the main artery for carrying natural gas through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado.

Last year’s explosion forced residents living within a mile of the facility to evacuate their homes for more than a day while emergency responders dealt with the threat of leaking natural gas. Five employees were treated for injuries, including one who was sent to a Portland hospital with burns. 

An investigation into the incident is now being led by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Their findings will be made public once all the information is gathered, Swaner said. 

It is not yet known whether the incident was accidental or caused by employee error. Based on those findings, Swaner said the company will take a closer look at procedures to see how they can avoid a similar event in the future.

“Until we really understand what happened at the facility, we don’t want to talk about procedures,” she said.

Company officials held a public meeting in Plymouth a week after the explosion, and Swaner said they hope to return by spring or summer with more information to share with the community. Prior to the blast, the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission last inspected the Plymouth facility in November 2013 and reported no violations.
Swaner said the company takes safety very seriously, although they dealt with a number of dangerous mishaps in 2014. Those included Plymouth, a pipeline explosion in West Virginia and gas plant explosion in Opal, Wyoming.

“These are things we don’t want to happen,” Swaner said. “We do look at our safety record, but we have to understand why we’re having these incidents.”

Williams Northwest filed notification with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 2, 2014, of its plans to repair the Plymouth facility in three phases. Most structures have already been repaired, and Swaner said employees are back to work.

//________________________________________//

All clear at Washington state LNG plant after unexplained blast: Williams

Wed Apr 2, 2014 1:14pm EDT

(Reuters) - A forced evacuation of the area around Williams Cos Inc's damaged liquefied natural gas facility in rural Washington state has been lifted following an explosion on Monday.

What prompted a blast that injured five workers and set off a potentially dangerous leak in a massive LNG tank at the site, near the southeastern Washington town of Plymouth, is still unknown and under investigation, the company said on its website.

"All residents were free to return home. Company personnel were on site to continue to secure and evaluate the operations and safety of the facility, while developing a plan for assessing the damage and the cause," Williams said in a statement posted on its website late Tuesday.

The town of Plymouth, on the Columbia River near the Washington-Oregon border, has around 400 residents.

Earlier, emergency responders had evacuated residents and workers within a 2-mile radius of the LNG storage facility, whose large tanks can store a combined 2.4 billion cubic feet of gas, or enough to meet up to 3.4 percent of daily U.S. natural gas demand.
The evacuation stemmed from concerns that ongoing leaks from one of two 134-foot tall tanks at the site, whose walls were breached by shrapnel from Monday's blast, could prompt a second, stronger explosion.

Michele Swaner, a spokeswoman for Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Williams, said on Wednesday that an investigation still underway showed the explosion on Monday had occurred in or around the site's control room building. The control room contains electrical equipment, she said.

Earlier, emergency responders for Benton County, where the facility is located, had said it was a pipeline within the site that exploded, sending shrapnel into one tank and causing LNG to leak out.
But on Wednesday, responders said they had pinpointed the explosion to a "processing vessel" next to the control building. It was not clear what the vessel contained.
The explosion "did send shrapnel across the site that penetrated the storage tank and caused damage in many locations, including the operations building," said Jeff Ripley, captain at one of the Benton County fire districts.

Joe Lusignan, a spokesman for the Benton County Sheriff's Department said the explosion threw pieces of shrapnel weighing an estimated 250 pounds (113.4 kg) up to 300 yards (meters).
There was no indication of foul play, but Lusignan said the county had "detectives working with the Williams investigators to ensure that we are there if there are indications of foul play".

"Right now we don't have any indications of foul play but we want to cover our bases just in case. Williams has told Benton County officials it may take weeks before the company knows what caused the explosion," Lusignan said.
Monday's explosion injured five workers at the site, one with burns and the others from flying debris.

NORTHWEST PIPELINE REMAINS OPEN

The LNG facility and a compressor station remain shut pending repairs. A major natural gas trunk pipeline in the region, the 3,900-mile-long Williams-operated Northwest Pipeline that supplies several Western states, is operating normally with gas deliveries uninterrupted, the company said.
The Williams site is known as a natural gas peak-shaving facility, which stores gas in super-cooled liquefied form to augment pipeline gas deliveries in times of peak demand.
The tanks had been around one-third full at the time of Monday's explosion. How much gas subsequently leaked out of one tank isn't clear.

The tank, and valves and pipes connected to it developed two separate leaks, Ripley said.
On Monday, leaking LNG froze the ground before evaporating into the atmosphere, Swaner said. Workers then turned the valves to shut off one leak and patched the other. The storage tanks are double walled and a layer of volcanic glass is used as insulation between the walls.

As a pressurized liquid cooled to around minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit, the tanked gas takes up just 1/600th the space it would occupy as a vapor, Williams said on its website.
LNG liquid itself isn't considered explosive. But the gas that boils off when heated can burn if it is mixed with the right amount of air. If gas vapors become trapped in a confined area they can explode.

Several regulatory agencies are involved in the investigation alongside Williams, including the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.