On line leak sealing

Sorry, the previous post on online leak sealing had a bad link....
Recently, I had met a senior colleague of mine called Mr S.Raghavachari after a gap of 20 years. While reminiscing about the "good old days", I remembered that he had written about online leak sealing. I mentioned about my blog and he promptly sent his article on the subject to share with readers.I thank him for sending the article.
Online leak sealing is effective if all hazards are evaluated. There have been numerous accidents during on line leak sealing, mainly due to the mushrooming of fly by night operators. Be careful while choosing your on line leak sealing contractor. Ensure he has the proper technical background and support.
 You can read Mr Raghavachari's article in this link.

Deadly explosion in pesticides factory

An explosion has taken place in a pesticide factory in China. A news article mentions that "According to the preliminary investigation, the major substance that caused the blast was guanidine nitrate, a combustion-supporting chemical that can irritate the eyes, skin and upper respiratory system. The specific cause of the accident is still under investigation"
Read about the accident and see photo of the blast zone in this link.

Don't make a mockery of a mock drill

The recent unfortunate death of a young woman  volunteer in a mock drill at Bangalore, speaks volumes of the state of emergency preparedness. In many chemical plants, mock drills are conducted by informing everyone about the timing of the drill. What is the purpose of this if you want to test your real emergency preparedness? In 1995 I attended an advanced firefighters and rescue training at Dubai where not only were we made to fight live natural gas fires generated in a natural gas skid mounted mock plant ( we had to isolate the supply of natural gas) but also made to search for victims inside buildings. Smoke bombs were placed inside the buildings to disorient us, along with strobe lights that were flashing ( also to disorient us). The instructors place a lot of emphasis on the safety of the firefighters and rescue team. Recently I read an article about a new training tool for firefighters in this link.
Always be prepared and don't make a mockery of a mock drill.

Silo collapse in fertilizer factory

A silo structure collapse in a fertiliser factory has led to injuries to 15 people.The cause of the incident is under investigation. Ensure that all structures (both civil and structural) are inspected and maintained properly. Sometimes, I have observed fertiliser material covering many structures. What you don't see cannot be inspected. Another article Mentions that police have registered criminal cases against the management.
See the video of the collapsed structure in this link
Read the article in this link.

Meetings and Process Safety

Nowadays meetings are the order of the day. Either the plant manager is coming from a meeting or going to one! Net result - plant visits by the plant manager are rare. Process safety needs to be managed by look,listen and feel technique - look at the plant, listen to your shift crew and feel the pulse of what is going on at the plant level! A newspaper report suggests that attending meetings makes one brain dead. Plant Managers - Beware!!!
Read the news article in this link