Houston Area Chemical Facility Fire Extinguished

Early this morning, at Deer Park near Houston, Texas, at a chemical storage facility called Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC) Tank Farm, there was a large fire that was finally extinguished after almost 4 days of burning. So far there are no serious injuries.

The fire started on Sunday afternoon when there was a leak in the manifold (a pipe or chamber that leads to several openings) of one of the facility’s tanks. That leak ignited the fire and the fire spread to seven tanks. ITC says the crews will continue spraying on the tanks with foam and water to keep them cool to prevent them from starting another fire.

Some who live around the area have been worried that the smoke will affect them. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEW) have said that the air quality is at the moderate level for Houston, Austin and San Antonio. This means the air quality is acceptable for most people, but for those highly sensitive to pollution might have moderate health issues.

ITC said that air monitoring near the facility shows readings “well below hazardous levels.” However, ITC has set up a claims hotline and website for those who think they might have been affected by the fire. The link to this website is provided in the transcript.

http://itcclaims.com/?fbclid=IwAR36W8qBiyGdiNLyp8ttiCFz4uYg2_7S-UVHA5LD2xP71sxkdKYGw6ufliI

https://www.click2houston.com/news/fire-at-deer-park-storage-facility-finally-out-after-several-days-itc-says

https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/explained-why-our-air-quality-won-t-likely-be-affected-by-houston-fire/1862883830

https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2019/03/20/fire-chemical-plant-houston-deer-park/

https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/20/us/deer-park-itc-plant-fire-wednesday/index.html