KMCO Chemical Plant Fire

The city of Houston is abuzz with turbulent activity as chemical plants continue operating at full throttle. Recently, the KMCO chemical plant in Crosby, Texas, ended up in flames. One of the workers lost their lives and two others suffered severe injuries. Our heartfelt condolences go out to their families as the residents of Crosby mourn the incident.

The fiasco occurred when one of the transfer lines sparked flames in and around the storage facility where a highly flammable chemical, isobutylene, was stored. The fire quickly spread to the nearby storage facility. Nevertheless, normalcy was restored by afternoon.

The Sheriff’s office issued a “Shelter in place” order for all those within a mile’s distance of the KMCO chemical plant facility. Short term response strategies were put into action immediately. People stayed indoors. Doors had to be shut. Ventilation ducts and air-conditioners had to be turned off.

In such situations, it is crucial to be aware of the consumption of limited oxygen supplies and the increase in CO2 levels. Both factors occur simultaneously and can complicate the issue. For instance, in schools, if the classrooms are not large enough, it would be prudent to shelter the children in the auditorium, gymnasium or any other large, enclosed space that has sufficient supplies of oxygen.

Then again, the oxygen tanks found in chemistry labs in school can be used to provide additional supplies of breathing air. Such measures become crucial when “Shelter in place” orders are issued for prolonged periods of time. A good DR plan should include all such possible response options.

More often than not, in a large facility such as the KMCO chemical plant, fire explosions tend to quickly spiral out of control and the repercussions can be devastating. Ensuring the health & safety of employees is of paramount importance in such scenarios, along with protecting the facility from damage.

Stay In Business’ cloud based BCDR platform has highly sought after communication features that you can take advantage of in such situations. For instance, your organization can use our Employee Locator and Employee Count features when disruptive events like the one in the KMCO chemical plant occur. The application quickly conducts a headcount of all staff members and even locates them. The Disaster Incident Commander in charge can view this data in real time and accordingly take the necessary action.