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Should Texas Residents Know the Chemicals They're Breathing After the Arkema Plant Explosion?
Hurricane Harvey has been downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane to a tropical depression as it moves over Louisiana and into Mississippi. Texas officials say at least 44 people were killed by the storm and nearly 100,000 homes are damaged by flooding. This comes as a chemical plant about 25 miles northeast of Houston, in Crosby, was rocked by two explosions early Thursday morning. The facility produces highly volatile chemicals known as organic peroxides, and at least 10 sheriff's deputies were hospitalized after inhaling fumes. Officials had already evacuated residents within a one-and-a-half-mile radius of the plant in the town of Crosby, after it lost primary and backup power to its coolant system. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez insisted in an early-morning press conference that the plant had not exploded, describing the event as a "pop" followed by smoke. But Federal Emergency Management Agency head Brock Long said a plume of chemicals leaking from the plant was "incredibly dangerous." We speak with Matt Dempsey, reporter with the Houston Chronicle who questioned Arkema about what is stored at the plant and who produced the investigative series "Chemical Breakdown," which examined regulatory failures of the chemical industry.
AMY GOODMAN: Hurricane Harvey has been downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane to a tropical depression as it moves over Louisiana and into Mississippi. In Houston, floodwaters have begun to recede, revealing corpses and mass devastation. Texas officials say at least 44 people have been killed by the storm. Nearly 100,000 homes are damaged by flooding. More than 30,000 people remain in shelters. Health officials are taking steps to minimize the spread of diseases such as cholera and typhoid, and nearly 150,000 homes have been told to boil their water. East of Houston, in hard-hit Beaumont, drinking water is completely shut off, and emergency workers are evacuating Beaumont's main hospital. Meanwhile, flooding continues in North Houston as the Neches River surged beyond its banks and is expected to rise another foot by Friday afternoon.
This comes as a chemical plant about 25 miles northeast of Houston, in Crosby, that's swamped by about six feet of water, was rocked by two explosions early Thursday morning that sent thick black smoke into the air. The facility produces highly volatile chemicals known as organic peroxides, and at least 10 sheriff's deputies went to the hospital after inhaling fumes. Officials had already evacuated residents within a one-and-a-half-mile radius of the plant in Crosby after it lost primary and backup power to its coolant system. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez insisted in an early-morning press conference that the plant had not exploded, describing the event as a "pop" followed by smoke. But Federal Emergency Management Agency head-that's FEMA head-Brock Long said a plume of chemicals leaking from the plant is "incredibly dangerous."
BROCK LONG: So, the bottom line is, is that we do what's called plume modeling, and that's what we base a lot of the evacuations on. And so, by all means, yes, the plume is incredibly dangerous.
AMY GOODMAN: This comes as the company, Arkema, has refused to state precisely which chemicals are produced or how many of them are still on site at the time of the explosions. During a call with reporters, Arkema CEO Richard Rowe said the company expected the chemicals on site to catch fire or explode, and admitted it is a way to prevent a fire or potential-it has no way to prevent a fire or potential explosion near the plant. He was questioned by reporter Matt Dempsey with the Houston Chronicle.
MATT DEMPSEY: I have the 2015 Tier II chemical inventory for your facility. Are you going to provide a updated-the most current Tier II chemical inventory for the facility to the media?
RICHARD ROWE: I don't-I don't know that we see the need to do that. I mean, all the-they're all involved with the-the peroxides that we're discussing.
MATT DEMPSEY: No, I understand that. There's a lot more detail in the Tier II chemical inventory for reporters that could be useful. Just to be clear, though, it sounds like you're not willing to release your current chemical-or your Tier II chemical inventory to the media?
RICHARD ROWE: I mean, again, I don't-I don't-we do not see the need at this time to do that.
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