One person was injured March 22 in an explosion and fire at a cumene plant operated by Ineos in Pasadena, Texas.
The explosion occurred shortly before noon. The injured person was the driver of a third-party bulk truck. The driver was transported by ambulance to a hospital in Houston and was in stable condition, Ineos officials said in a March 22 news release.
At the time of the explosion and fire, according to Ineos, liquid bulk trucks were delivering liquid petroleum gas (LPG) to the plant. The LPG was a mixture of propylene and propane, a raw material used in the production of cumene. Cumene is to make phenol, which has many uses, including as a feedstock for polycarbonate resins.
"During offloading of the LPG, for reasons that are unclear, the LPG ignited, causing an explosion and subsequent fire," officials said. Ineos personnel responded and began firefighting operations.
The Pasadena Fire Department, Harris County Fire Marshal's Office of Hazardous Materials team and Houston Police Department responded to the incident, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in a news release.
The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston reported no pollution in the water and there do not appear to be any known remaining hazardous material leaks, but monitoring continues, Hidalgo said.
The fire was extinguished by 1 p.m. Air monitoring was conducted down wind of the plant by an independent, third-party company. Results of the air monitoring showed no degradation in surrounding air quality.
The plant is currently shut down. Ineos is working with local law enforcement, county personnel, and federal and state agencies to determine the cause of the incident. Officials said there's no danger to the surrounding community.
The plant is operated by the Ineos Phenol business unit of Ineos. London-based Ineos is a global materials supplier, whose products include polyethylene and polypropylene resins.
