Impact of the explosion and fire at Caribbean petroleum tank terminal in bayamon Puerto Rico

Background: At On October 23, 2009, normal tank filling operations turned catastrophic when a 5 million gallon atmospheric tank overflowed gasoline for approximately 30 minutes at the Caribbean Petroleum terminal in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. A developing vapor cloud enveloped part of the tank farm and reached the wastewater treatment area where it ignited. The vapor cloud exploded, creating a pressure wave that damaged hundreds of homes and businesses up to 1.25 miles from the site. The fuel in the tanks burned over two days. Neighboring communities were evacuated and oil contaminated the nearby wetlands.

Methods: The U.S. Chemical Safety Board utilized various investigative tools including a logic tree, witness interviews, and an in depth policy analysis to identify the contributing causes that led to the catastrophic explosion. Results: The CSB investigation found a number of safety system deficiencies at the facility, gaps in the regulatory and industry standards addressing overfill prevention, and lack of a risk assessment process contributed to the incident.

Conclusions: The CSB generated recommendations to industry groups, regulatory agencies, and other stakeholders to prevent similar incidents.