Geismar, Louisiana (Reuters) - The Louisiana Plant ignites on fire, has killed one person and injuring 77 people. The one person that was found was 29 year old Zachary C. Green from Hammond and further details were undisclosed. The plant located in Geismar exploded around 8:30 in the morning.
About 300 employees were evacuated from the scene. A few incubated themselves in a bombshell like saferoom. Residents were advised by Authorities and open announcement by Governor Bobby Jindal within a two-mile radius to stay indoors to avoid breathing the smoke fumes and gas emissions.The plant is close proximity to the well known city of New Orleans by the Mississippi River.
Petrochemical Propylene was the cause of the explosion, Officials reported. Williams Cos, 83% key stake holder of responded to the scene, transporting 73 individuals to the hospital. The parent company shares also fell by 1%, Physician Dr. Floyd Roberts reported others received treatment at the Baton Rouge General Hospital burn center.
The fire ceased 3 hours later and the plant operations were shut down.
A very similar incident happened at a Texas fertilizer plant that killed 14 people.
Sheriff Jeffrey Wiley of Ascension Parish remarked "It's a sad day in Geismar, and particularly for the Williams Olefins work family. "It's an industry that practices safety every second of every day, but regrettably, things do happen."
The Petrochemical annually produces over 1 billion pounds of ethylene and approximately 100 million pounds of polymer grade propylene, data compiled by Williams Cos. Ethylene and Proylene are chemical material made to create plastics.
The petrochemical industry safety procedures has been under investigation, especially since the 200 million gallons of oil gas spilled in the Gulf of Mexico on July 2010. To recall, the BP disaster ignited an explosion that killed 17 people, killed wildlife, including fish, birds, and other mammals, created unemployment of BP employees, fishermen, and local residents that reside on the !6,000 mile coast line. The incident has cost an astronomical amount of $40 billion dollars in fines and $16 billion in regards to Clean Water Act. Gulf as we know it is still contaminated with the oil spilled that affected parts of New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida. Long-term damages including property and health-risks abide on the Gulf Coast of Mexico.
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