The Chemical Safety Board (CSB) releases a new report about the TPC plant explosion in Port Neches, Texas, which sheds additional light on the timeline of the catastrophic event. According to 12 News Now, federal officials say that just two minutes after about 6,000 gallons of liquid vapor, mostly butadiene, escaped from a processing tower at the TPC plant in Port Neches, the plant was on fire.
While the investigation is ongoing, the CSB report details what happened before, during and after the explosion. It references popcorn polymer, which can form in equipment when oxygen and butadiene react. Eight days before the explosion, TPC reportedly installed temporary filters to catch any chunks of popcorn polymer. A TPC spokesperson says in a statement that the company will take action to address the CSB’s concerns once the investigation is complete.
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