A rupture in a thin, corroded pipe caused the explosion and fire that rocked the Silver Eagle Refinery in Woods Cross, Utah, in November 2009, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) announced Thursday. CSB said in its report on the incident the rupture occurred in a 10-inch pipe at the bottom of a reactor in a mobile distillate dewaxing unit. A subsequent release of hydrogen caught fire and exploded, damaging more than 100 homes in the vicinity of the plant. There were no fatalities or serious injuries.
CSB’s investigation revealed that the ruptured pipe had no record of having been inspected as it thinned. CSB Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso issued a statement criticizing mechanical integrity programs at refineries, which, he said, “primarily emphasize inspection strategies rather than inherently safer design.” He said the same problem led to the Bay Area Chevron refinery explosion in 2012 and the Tesoro refinery explosion and fire in Anacortes, Wash., in 2010.
