http://www.yourlawyer.com/topics/overview/barton_solvents_plant_explosion Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:23:00 -0800 pixel-app en http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/13042 Mon, 27 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/13042
Barton Solvents began cutting up and removing the tanks on Friday, after the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board informed the company that it was finished examining the tanks.  The board had given Barton Solvents permission to dismantle the tanks and remove debris from the plant, although the investigation is still ongoing.  One of the Board’s investigators told the Wichita Eagle that the on-the-ground investigation of the Barton Solvent’s plant is done, but that the investigation is far from over.   The Board, an independent federal agency that investigates industrial chemical accidents, is still examining equipment at the Valley Center facility.  It could be some time before the Board issues a final report on the Barton Solvents explosion.

The Barton Solvents plant explosion occurred at 9:15 a.m. on July 17, and resulted in a massive fire.  Witnesses said that smoke and flames billowed more than 200 feet into the air, and at least 15 smaller explosions were heard. Authorities said that 36 storage tanks containing about 660,000 pounds of chemicals burned during the fire.   The tanks contained hydrocarbons, ketones and alcohol.  The explosions started on a tanker truck that was pumping naphtha into a 15,000-gallon tank.   The Kansas Fire Marshall has said that static electricity in the tank was responsible for igniting the explosion.

Earlier this month, Barton Solvent’s announced plans to rebuild the Valley Center plant, and said that it will replace all of the facility’s storage tanks during the rebuilding.  The current tanks were built in 1979, and are no longer up to code.

In a statement issued to announce the removal of the tanks, Barton Solvents president David Casten thanked the citizens of Valley Center for the patience shown the company.   "Since the fire, we've had the opportunity to observe the kindness of our neighbors first hand, which has been a tremendous experience," the statement read. "Moving forward, there is a great deal of work to be done, but this is an important next step for all of us.”

Earlier this month, in an attempt to rehabilitate its reputation following the explosion, Barton Solvents offered to purchase fire fighting foam for the Valley Center Fire Department.  The day of the explosion, it had taken the fire department hours to find enough foam to fight the ensuing fire.  Barton Solvents said that the department could use the foam to fight any fire, and that the company would pay to replenish the supply as needed.

Barton Solvents also has said that it has issued 1,491 reimbursement checks to Valley Center residents who were forced to evacuate as a result of the explosion.  Barton Solvents will not divulge how much it has spent on reimbursements thus far.

]]> http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12951 Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12951 plant explosion with their losses.

The reimbursements were issued over a three day period last week.  Valley Center residents who were forced to flee their homes in the wake of the plant explosion could be reimbursed in one of two ways.  They could receive a per diem rate for each day they were out of their homes if they stayed with family or friends, or they could receive money for hotel rooms, meals and other expenses if they presented receipts for those items.  Another reimbursement session will be held for residents who could not make last week’s meetings.  Barton Solvents will not say how much money it distributed so far.

On Monday evening, business owners were invited by the Valley Center Chamber of Commerce to meet with representatives from Barton Solvents to discuss their losses.  The company told the audience that adjusters would be visiting business owners who had claims.  Company representatives asked for patience, as business loss claims take time to validate and process.   The company urged owners to complete claims forms as soon as possible in order to expedite the process.

Meanwhile, cleanup at the Barton Solvents Plant was put on hold as investigation into the blast continues.  The Kansas State Department of Health and Environment is testing soil samples for contamination, and fire investigators from several insurance companies are expected to arrive at the plant later this week to do their own investigations.  The company said it will continue the cleanup once those investigators have finished their surveys.

Barton Solvent’s also announced plans to rebuild the Valley Center plant, and said that it will replace all of the facility’s storage tanks during the rebuilding.  The current tanks were built in 1979, and are no longer up to code.  And in an effort to regain some good will, Barton Solvents said that it would be purchasing fire fighting foam for the Valley Center Fire Department.  The day of the explosion, it had taken the fire department hours to find enough foam to fight the ensuing fire.  Barton Solvents said that the department could use the foam to fight any fire, and that the company would pay to replenish the supply as needed.

The Barton Solvents Plant explosion resulted in the evacuation of more than 200 people from Valley Center.  During the fire, all of the plant’s 44 storage tanks burned along with 660,000 gallons of chemicals.  The tanks held hydrocarbons, ketones, alcohol and other chemicals used in the paint and coatings industry.  

]]> http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12929 Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12929 Barton Solvents, Inc. facility in Valley Center, Kansas were allowed to return home early this morning after nearly a week, according to a report in the Wichita Eagle.

A photo on the Eagle’s web site shows residents lining up to return to their homes after an explosion and ensuing fire had ripped through Barton Solvent’s chemical storage and distribution facility last Tuesday.  
 
The explosion in Valley Center, a town just to the north of Wichita, vaulted the tank hundreds of feet in the air and quickly spread to other tanks, flinging an adjacent tank into the air and knocking the tops off of three. A fire then engulfed the 43-tank storage facility, which the company has said it will rebuild.  There were no injuries to employees on the site.  

Static electricity ignited vapors inside a 24-foot tall storage tank as it was being filled with naptholite, a solvent.  Black smoke billowed hundreds of feet into the air, raising air quality concerns and prompting an evacuation of the surrounding area.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) dispatched three on-site coordinators to Valley Center, along with a plane to provide measures of air quality, the EPA said in a press release last week.  Though the agency had made no statement regarding the sampling results as of Wednesday afternoon, air quality had apparently improved to the point that residents were allowed to return home.  

Preliminary reports indicate that the quality of the groundwater near the Barton Solvents Chemical Plant has not been severely impacted by the explosion.  However, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) said in a press release that “The need for groundwater monitoring may continue for some time” to ensure public safety.  

“Solvent-contaminated water and soil is already being removed from Barton Solvents property, staged for analysis and properly disposed,” KDHE added in the press release.  
 
Barton Solvents employees were pumping chemicals from a truck into a storage tank when the blast occurred.  Associated Press reports indicate that the truck was grounded at the time of the explosion, meaning that the static electricity must have originated in the tank.

Barton Solvents has provided authorities with a report certifying that all tanks at the Valley Center, Kansas facility were properly grounded as recently as six months ago, according to the Associated Press.  But the tanks were clearly not grounded when the explosion occurred early last week, and Sedgwick County Fire Marshall Tim Millspaugh told the Wichita Eagle that he questions a statewide inspection system that allowed state regulators to ignore the facility.

State Fire Marshall investigator David Higday pointed out that there were about 16 inches of liquid in the tank at the time of the blast.  Procedures on filling the tanks also remain unregulated, Higday told the Wichita Eagle.  

Barton Solvents has announced that it will issue reimbursement checks to cover expenses incurred by residents during the evacuation.  Evacuees with receipts will receive full reimbursement, while those without can receive full compensation, according to several area new sources.  

]]> http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12919 Mon, 23 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12919 Barton Solvent's Plant explosion in Valley Center, Kansas last Tuesday had not been inspected for fire dangers, and that is prompting one local official to demand change.  Sedgwick County Fire Marshall Tim Millspaugh called on Kansas State leaders to change laws that allow tanker farms like the Barton Solvent’s Plant to avoid fire danger inspections.  Millspaugh said that no such inspections had been done at the Valley Center plant because state law does not allow for them.

The Barton explosion resulted in the evacuation of more than 200 people in the Wichita suburb.  During the fire, all of the plant’s 44 storage tanks burned along with 660,000 gallons of chemicals.  The tanks held hydrocarbons, ketones, alcohol and other chemicals used in the paint and coatings industry.  Witnesses said that during  the fire, black smoke shot more than 200 feet into the air, and that at least 15 smaller blasts could be heard.  Twelve people were treated at an area hospital for minor injuries.  Barton Solvents said that the tanks had been inspected regularly by the company’s insurer, and that the tanks in Valley Center had passed a structural integrity test back in 2004.

Barton’s management said that the blast was started by static electricity as workers filled one tank with dry cleaning fluid.   The U.S Chemical Safety Board said last Thursday that it would be sending investigators to the Barton Plant to look into the explosion.  The plant is owned by Barton Solvents, a Des Moines, Iowa distributor of industrial chemicals, oils, surfactants, and plasticizers.  

Barton Solvents also announced that it was working on a reimbursement plan to assist those who were displaced during the evacuation.  The company urged residents to retain receipts for food, hotels and other expenses incurred during their time away from home.  The company also said that it would not lay off any of the plant’s 22 employees, and plans on rebuilding on the same site if regulators approve the plan.

Valley Center officials conceded that cleanup of the blast site was proceeding slowly, mainly because much of the equipment and personnel they needed was held up in Coffeyville, Kansas.  That town was the site of a massive oil spill and flood earlier this month.   Barton said that berms had been built around the burned tanks to prevent runoff of chemicals, and contaminated soil was being removed from adjacent properties.

]]> http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12905 Wed, 18 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/read/12905 Barton Solvents Plant were allowed to return to Valley Center, Kansas today.  However, parts of the community closest to the blast will remain closed for the time being.  Valley Center, a suburb of Wichita with a population of 5,000, was most affected by the explosion.  No serious injuries were reported as of yet; although 12 people did have to be admitted to area hospitals. The plant is owned by Barton Solvents, a Des Moines, Iowa distributor of industrial chemicals, oils, surfactants, and plasticizers.   The plant, about 10 miles north of Wichita, employs about two dozen people and about 12 were working at the time of the blast.  All workers were accounted for after the blast.

The Barton Plant explosion occurred at 9:15 a.m. and resulted in a massive fire.  Witnesses said that smoke and flames billowed more than 200 feet into the air, and at least 15 smaller explosions were heard. Authorities said that 36 storage tanks containing about 660,000 pounds of chemicals burned during the fire.   The tanks contained hydrocarbons, ketones and alcohol.  Witnesses said that the fire burned so hot that there was little firefighters could do to extinguish the blaze at the Barton plant.  Rather, crews focused on keeping it from spreading to nearby buildings, an endeavor which was largely successful.  State, federal and local officials arrived in Valley Center last night to begin investigating the explosion. State officials also said that 60 Kansas National Guard troops would be assisting with recovery efforts.  Overnight, workers built an earthen barrier around the plant to collect contaminated materials.  So far, about 17,000 gallons of water, fire fighting foam and solvents had been collected.

State health officials decided this morning to keep sections of Valley Center closed because some parts of the community registered chemical levels as high as 15 parts per million.  While they believe that long-term health problems should be minimal, residents could experience headaches and nausea for several days.  There is also concern about the soot left from the smoke and vapors of the fire.  Residents have been warned not to touch the dust unless they are wearing masks, gloves and other protective clothing.  Chemical solvents like those stored at the Barton plant are known to be cancerous, toxic compounds. There is concern that the various chemicals in the smoke plume could have become volatilized, interacted and formed new, more dangerous compounds in the air.  

The Barton plant explosion is the second environmental disaster to hit the state of Kansas in less than a month.  On June 28, 2007 during an already catastrophic flood, at least 42,000 gallons of oil was allowed to escape from the CVR Resources refinery into the town of Coffeyville, Kansas.

]]> http://www.yourlawyer.com/topics/overview/barton_solvents_plant_explosion Wed, 18 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0700 http://www.yourlawyer.com/topics/overview/barton_solvents_plant_explosion Barton Solvents Plant Explosion The Barton Solvents Plant explosion and resulting fire in Valley Center, Kansas occurred on July 17, 2007 and resulted in the evacuation of more than 200 people in the Wichita suburb.  During the fire, 36 storage tanks containing about 660,000 pounds of hydrocarbons, ketones, alcohol and other chemicals used in the paint and coatings industry were destroyed.  The fire raged throughout the afternoon, and firefighters could do little except work to keep it from reaching other buildings around the plant.  Authorities were unable to determine what caused the explosion. The plant is owned by Barton Solvents, a Des Moines, Iowa distributor of industrial chemicals, oils, surfactants, and plasticizers.

Witness said that first explosion at the Barton Solvents Plant occurred at 9:15 a.m. and was followed by at least 15 smaller blasts.  Smoke and flames, which billowed more than 200 feet into the air, could be seen for miles.  Most of the evacuees were taken to the Kansas Coliseum, but ten people were admitted to Wichita-area hospitals.   Though the evacuation order was later lifted, people who had left their homes were not allowed to return immediately, and residents who lived within a mile downwind or a half mile upwind were advised to stay away from their homes. Those still in Valley Center were told to stay on the ground floors of their homes and to refrain from using their air conditioners.

The full extent of damage done by the Barton Solvents Plant explosion is still being determined.  If you or a loved one have been affected by this disaster you may be entitled to compensation. Please fill out the form at the right for a free case review by a qualified attorney]]>