Little General Store Propane Explosion - US Chemical Safety and ...
Little General Store Propane Explosion - US Chemical Safety and ...
Little General Store Propane Explosion - US Chemical Safety and ...
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<strong>Little</strong> <strong>General</strong> <strong>Store</strong> September 2008<br />
practice emergency response scenarios. The service technician who was sent to assist the fire department<br />
had both CETP training on all propane service <strong>and</strong> delivery procedures <strong>and</strong> on-the-job experience as a<br />
service technician <strong>and</strong> a delivery driver.<br />
In emergency response cases like this one, the fire department is in charge of the scene, with the gas<br />
company employees on the scene to assist <strong>and</strong> advise the fire department as necessary. Occasionally,<br />
propane service technicians responding at the request of a fire department take offensive steps to stop a<br />
release—in this case, by installing a valve. The fire department’s decision to allow the propane service<br />
technician to repair the tank was different from the Ghent incident in several important ways:<br />
• The fire department had evacuated <strong>and</strong> secured the scene prior to the technician’s entry.<br />
• The vapor release from the leaking fill valve was much less severe than the liquid propane release<br />
in Ghent, requiring only a small repair for the tank to remain in service safely.<br />
• The technician was CETP-certified <strong>and</strong> experienced, had drilled on emergency response<br />
scenarios, <strong>and</strong> had previously worked with the fire department on propane incidents.<br />
When emergency responders <strong>and</strong> service technicians have clearly established <strong>and</strong> rehearsed roles in an<br />
incident comm<strong>and</strong> structure, both groups are better equipped to implement their training.<br />
1.2 Lynchburg, Virginia<br />
1.2.1 Incident Description<br />
At about 1:00 pm on November 26, 2007, a traffic accident caused a vehicle to crash into a 1,000-gallon<br />
propane tank used for filling cylinders, located outside of a True Value Hardware store in Lynchburg,<br />
Virginia. When the vehicle struck the tank, the inch-<strong>and</strong>-a-half liquid line connecting a pump <strong>and</strong> the<br />
tank was severed. The tank settled on top of the severed pipe, which in turn prevented the excess-flow<br />
valve from seating, resulting in a liquid propane release. Hardware store employees called 911 <strong>and</strong> the<br />
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