CSB Releases Safety Video on 2019 ITC Terminal Fire

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB), an independent federal agency based in Washington, D.C., released a new safety video Sept. 10 on its investigation into the March 17, 2019 fire at the Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC) facility in Deer Park, Texas. The video includes animation of the incident and commentary from CSB Chair Steve Owens and lead investigator Crystal Thomas. The agency’s final report on the incident was issued in July 2023.

At the time of the fire, the ITC facility had 242 aboveground storage tanks containing petrochemical products such as naphtha, toluene and xylene. On March 17, a circulation pump on Tank 80-8 failed, releasing a butane-naphtha blend that ignited after about 30 minutes, the CSB said. The fire burned for three days, destroying 15 tanks, causing more than $150 million in property damage and prompting community shelter-in-place orders, said the agency.

The release of an estimated 470,000–523,000 barrels of hydrocarbons, firefighting foam and contaminated water also impacted the environment when a containment wall failed, allowing materials to flow into a nearby bayou and the Houston Ship Channel. 

“The incident at the ITC terminal resulted from several serious failures at the facility,” Owens said in the video. “In particular, ITC lacked monitors to alert operators that the pump had failed. And ITC had no remotely operated emergency isolation valves that could have safely stopped the release of the flammable liquid.”

According to the CSB, the safety video outlines five key safety issues: pump mechanical integrity, flammable gas detection systems, remotely operated emergency isolation valves, tank farm design, and process safety management (PSM) and risk management program (RMP) applicability. The video also highlights recommendations the agency made to ITC, the American Petroleum Institute, OSHA and the EPA.

Owens added, “A serious gap in federal regulations also contributed to the severity of this event. We believe that our recommendations, particularly to OSHA and EPA, to expand regulatory oversight of these kinds of chemicals and facilities will help ensure that a similar incident does not occur in the future.”

The CSB does not issue citations or fines but investigates incidents and makes recommendations to industry, labor groups and regulatory agencies to help prevent chemical disasters.