Failure of pallet tank unit revealed as cause of Napier Port chemical spill
A HAZMAT incident at the Port of Napier yesterday was caused by the failure of a pallet tank unit, which held the substance, located inside the container, it has been revealed.
Emergency services were called to the scene of the chemical spill at 9.55am and spent more than eight hours getting it under control and removing the damaged units. In total seven appliances, and about 30 firefighters were called to the scene throughout the day.
A Napier Port spokesperson said full operations resumed today, after FENZ handed operations back to port authorities at 7pm yesterday evening.
He said their Health and Safety team will be conducting an incident follow-up next week.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand Hawke's Bay Assistant Area Commander Glen Varcoe said they found two Intermediate bulk containers (also referred to as pallet tank units) carrying 1000 litres each of styrene monomer were damaged.
They had to unload the container, which held 18 units to access the two damaged ones, and clean and make the area safe once again.
"We had a waste removal company that came in and removed the waste and all the byproduct from the absorbent material that we used to clean up," Varcoe said. The 16 remaining units were repacked into the container and sent to the company there were intended for," Varcoe said.
He said their priority right at the beginning of the job, was to ensure all drains were sealed as the substance is toxic to aquatic life. "The waste disposal company cleared the drains before they were opened up to ensure that there was no by-product getting into the waterways."
Varcoe says due to the nature of these jobs, they are always long in duration. "Obviously, because we're involved with chemicals there are safety precautions that we have to put in place for everyone's protection."
Hawke’s Bay Regional Council GM Policy & Regulation Katrina Brunton said yesterday that the Pollution Response team reported that the leak appeared to not be too large and the substance was in a gel-like form and appeared to be coming out the rear of the container.
