Posted on 03/23/2005 11:26:08 AM PST by Siobhan
Talking to my sister who is in Galveston, Texas today. A loud explosion -- should the houses, rattled windows, knocked a picture off the wall. Large black cloud in sky perhaps the Causeway or Texas City.....
Just reporting what she's saying.....
10 people expected to be transported to the hospital.
I'm not complaining, I'm in the drilling equipment and supply business.
Need a drilling rig? or equipment?
It represents 30% of BP's national supply of gasoline, but I don't know how much of the refinery is knocked out of commission. Way too early to tell.
Bump!!
Thanks for posting that live coverage link.
I've had Fox News on, and still no mention at all about this. Alligators, Michael Jackson, etc.
Holy crap... look at that tank!
Residents were injured by their windows being blown out in their homes.
More cars cooking off now, some local residents being transported to hospitals for shrapnel injuries. Emergency workers currently attempting to rescue possibly trapped employees.
In short, a normal day in the neighborhood around Houston.
When a local smells something in Houston, it is time to evacuate! Their olfactory sensitivity has been shut down for years. Must really be bad....
I'm monitoring the local news coverage. It looks pretty bad..
Firefighters sifting through debris. Looks like they are looking for victims. Reports say some are missing.
March 23, 2005, 2:11PM
An explosion rocked the BP's petrochemical plant this afternoon, shaking nearby buildings and sending huge plumes of black smoke into the air that could be seen from Galveston to Clear Lake.
There is no immediate word on injuries, although Life Flight has been called to the plant east of Texas 146.
Emergency management officials are ordering all residents to remain indoors. George Fuller with the Texas City emergency management office said residents should keep their doors and windows closed and air conditioning systems turned off. Students now in school must remain inside, and parents will not be allowed to pick up their children.
"We are in shelter in place mode, which means no one goes into our buildings and no one leaves our buildings until we get the all clear," said Melissa Tortorici, a spokeswoman for the 5,000-student Texas City school district.
BP's Texas City plant is a sprawling industrial complex that stretches across 1,200 acres with 30 refinery units. The plant processes 460 million barrels of crude oil every day, producing 3 percent of the U.S. gasoline supply. It employs asbout 2,000 peole.
A 47-year resident of Texas City says he was asleep when he heard the blast this afternoon - but that it was loud enough to wake him up.
``It was just a real loud explosion,'' said Mike Martin. `` It sounded like a sonic boom, and it shook the pictures bad enough to where it knocked them off the wall. And it frightened me, so I jumped out of bed.''
Martin says he could see the smoke from his home on Pelican Harbor, located on Galveston Bay and about four miles from the plant.
``I was up in about 15 seconds and you could already see the flames,'' said Martin, who works the midnight shift for CenterPoint Energy. ``It's pretty bad, whatever it is.''
However, Martin also says in the last few minutes, the flames have subsided, although a large amount of smoke continues to rise into the air.
He adds that Texas City's emergency warning system has been encouraging residents to stay indoors.
``I don't want to get in my vehicle and drive over there or anything,'' he said.
Martin adds that he has lived in Texas City all of his life, and that he has seen explosions worse than this one. So far, he said, he has heard only one blast.
Looks like they found one. Bringing in a backboard.
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