US methanol industry steps up safety training

18 October 2007 23:31  [Source: ICIS news]

By Stefan Baumgarten

TORONTO (ICIS news)--Training staff for safe handling of methanol remains a concern in the US with memories of a deadly blast last year still resounding through the industry, top safety officials said on Thursday.

Working with the US Chemical Safety Board (CSB), the Methanol Institute is developing more training materials for workers at wastewater treatment plants such as the one where the blast occured, officials told the 2007 Methanol Forum in Toronto.

The 2006 accident at the Bethune Point waste water treatment plant in Daytona Beach, Florida, resulted in the death of two workers and left another seriously injured, prompting widespread concern about adequate training.

The workers were using a cutting torch close to a methanol tank which exploded when methanol vapour from the tank ignited, CSB investigations manager Steve Selk said in a presentation.

Proper training and information from employers could have prevented the deaths, Selk said.

“You cannot blame the workers in such situations,” he said.

The fact that risks and proper handling of many chemical products are well documented is a factor coming into play when the legal system assigns liability for accidents, Selk said after the presentation.

Co-sponsored by Houston-based consultants Jim Jordan & Associates and the Washington, DC-based Methanol Institute (MI), the two-day 2007 Methanol Forum ends on Thursday.

By: Stefan Baumgarten
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