Shipping resumes in Houston channel fouled by chemical spill
The Houston Ship Channel partially reopened after it was polluted with cancer-causing benzene and toxic runoff.
Updated 6:25 p.m. ET
The U.S. Gulf Coast’s most important industrial waterway partially reopened on Monday after it was polluted with cancer-causing benzene and toxic runoff from the region’s worst chemical disaster in more than a decade.
A two-mile (3.2-kilometer) stretch of the Houston Ship Channel’s that’s been closed for three days will be open during daytime hours while the clean-up continues. Pilots have been ordered by the U.S. Coast Guard to stay at least 30 minutes apart so each vessel can be inspected to ensure it’s not dragging oily residue through the water.
Partial reopening
The partial reopening means that oil refiners, chemical makers, grain exporters and other industries in Houston’s eastern suburbs are no longer cut off from the Gulf of Mexico and international markets. The Port of Houston handles more than $130 billion in trade annually. Industrial chemicals are by far the largest bulk commodity traversing the waterway, followed by petroleum coke and grain.
More than 30 ships were stranded earlier Monday on either side of the no-go zone as the unfolding Intercontinental Terminals Co. calamity entered its second week, according to Coast Guard figures. Royal Dutch Shell Plc slowed fuel production at its Houston-area refinery because of the disruption to waterborne crude deliveries, Reuters reported.
ITC achieved a significant milestone Sunday in emptying more than half a million gallons of toxic liquid from an onshore tank wrecked in the four-day blaze that erupted March 17 and sent a mile-high plume of black smoke skyward. As of Monday morning, five tanks had been emptied and two more were targeted for draining.
“This incident is not over,” Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said during a media briefing on Monday afternoon. “Currently, it’s a volatile situation.” The county issued a subpoena ordering ITC to preserve all evidence, she said.
The channel isn’t a source of drinking water for Houston or its suburbs. Dozens of major companies rely on the waterway to receive crude oil and other raw materials, and to send out finished products such as fuel and livestock feed.
Benzene-laced refining byproduct drained from charred tank
ITC crews finally drained about 13,000 barrels (546,000 gallons) of a benzene-laced refining byproduct called pygas from a charred tank on Sunday after two earlier unsuccessful attempts, said Brent Weber, the company’s incident commander.
By Monday, that tank — numbered 80-7 on the facility map — had been completely drained, a significant achievement for ITC because it allows crews access to other damaged tanks still holding dangerous chemicals. A 2-foot (0.6-meter) deep pool of chemicals on the ground around the damaged tanks was reduced to 2 inches by Sunday morning.
Benzene levels in the air over suburban Deer Park and neighboring communities remained below harmful levels, said Adam Adams of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
That was a far cry from late last week, when readings of the pollutant linked to leukemia and other forms of cancer shut entire towns, triggered panic and sent 1,000 people to a pop-up medical clinic.
Worst industrial disaster since 2005 in Houston
Residents remain on edge, wondering what’s next and when normal life will return. For many Houstonians, it’s the worst industrial disaster since the 2005 explosion at BP Plc’s Texas City refinery that killed 15.
“There’s more tanks in there. Is it going to reignite? It’s very uncertain,” said Mercy Reyna, 50, who’s been suffering from headaches, eye discomfort and chest tightness. “The trust is not there. We feel like we’re not being told the truth of what’s going on.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit accusing ITC of violating clean-air laws. Meanwhile, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the disaster.
‘Scariest I’ve ever seen’
Dan Lowe, 52, sought treatment for eye and throat irritation. After ruling out strep throat and influenza, his doctor ordered blood tests to check for signs of benzene exposure. Lowe, who passed through Deer Park several times last week while driving for Uber, is awaiting the results.
“We used to siphon gasoline as teenagers and it felt like that,” he said of the pain in his throat. “It was stupid, but you don’t forget that taste.”
County officials said they have no plans for now to stand up an ad-hoc medical clinic that was open for three days in Deer Park. Anyone with symptoms was urged to contact their doctor or call 911.
“I’ve been here most of my adult life, and this is the scariest I’ve seen it.”
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Originally published March 25, 2019
More than 60 ships are stranded near Houston as the region’s most important commercial waterway remained shut because of cancer-causing benzene wafting off the region’s worst chemical disaster in more than a decade.
Benzene must dissipate; oily runoff must be collected or dispersed
The Houston Ship Channel will be cut off from the Gulf of Mexico until the U.S. Coast Guard verifies the benzene has dissipated and oily runoff has been collected or dispersed. A nearby waterway, the San Jacinto River, reopened on an intermittent basis but that’s no relief for oil refiners, chemical makers, grain exporters and other industries upstream of the channel closure.
More than 30 ships have been halted on either side of the closure as the unfolding Intercontinental Terminals Co. calamity enters its second week, according to Coast Guard figures. Royal Dutch Shell Plc slowed fuel production at its Houston-area refinery because of the disruption to waterborne crude deliveries, Reuters reported.
ITC achieved a significant milestone Sunday in emptying more than half a million gallons of toxic liquid from an onshore tank wrecked in the four-day blaze that erupted March 17 and sent a mile-high plume of black smoke skyward. As of Monday morning, five tanks had been emptied and two more were targeted for draining.
The Coast Guard said a test vessel successfully navigated the channel’s 2-mile-long no-go zone and another test sailing was planned for Monday. The tests are used to determine whether ship traffic can resume without disrupting efforts to skim gasoline ingredients that spilled into the waterway.
Coast Guard Capt. Kevin Oditt declined on Monday morning to estimate when the channel will reopen. But when it does, it will initially be restricted to daylight traffic, he said.
Major companies rely on the waterway
The channel, which isn’t a source of drinking water for Houston or its suburbs, connects the region’s dense warren of refineries, chemical processors and fertilizer warehouses to the rest of the world via Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Dozens of major companies rely on the waterway to receive crude oil and other raw materials, and to send out finished products such as fuel and livestock feed.
ITC crews finally drained about 13,000 barrels (546,000 gallons) of a benzene-laced refining byproduct called pygas from a charred tank on Sunday after two earlier unsuccessful attempts, said Brent Weber, the company’s incident commander.
By Monday, that tank — numbered 80-7 on the facility map — had been completely drained, a significant achievement for ITC because it allows crews access to other damaged tanks still holding dangerous chemicals. A 2-foot (0.6-meter) deep pool of chemicals on the ground around the damaged tanks was reduced to 2 inches by Sunday morning.
1,000 sent to pop-up medical clinic last week
Benzene levels in the air over suburban Deer Park and neighboring communities remained below harmful levels, said Adam Adams of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
That was a far cry from late last week, when readings of the pollutant linked to leukemia and other forms of cancer shut entire towns, triggered panic and sent 1,000 people to a pop-up medical clinic.
Residents remain on edge, wondering what’s next and when normal life will return. For many Houstonians, it’s the worst industrial disaster since the 2005 explosion at BP Plc’s Texas City refinery that killed 15.
“There’s more tanks in there. Is it going to reignite? It’s very uncertain,” said Mercy Reyna, 50, who’s been suffering from headaches, eye discomfort and chest tightness. “The trust is not there. We feel like we’re not being told the truth of what’s going on.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit accusing ITC of violating clean-air laws. Meanwhile, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating the disaster.
Benzene exposure scary for residents
Dan Lowe, 52, sought treatment for eye and throat irritation. After ruling out strep throat and influenza, his doctor ordered blood tests to check for signs of benzene exposure. Lowe, who passed through Deer Park several times last week while driving for Uber, is awaiting the results.
“We used to siphon gasoline as teenagers and it felt like that,” he said of the pain in his throat. “It was stupid, but you don’t forget that taste.”
County officials said they have no plans for now to stand up an ad-hoc medical clinic that was open for three days in Deer Park. Anyone with symptoms was urged to contact their doctor or call 911.
“I’ve been here most of my adult life, and this is the scariest I’ve seen it.”
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