Texans near chemical fire told to stay inside

HOUSTON — Authorities on Thursday ordered people to stay indoors for several hours after high levels of benzene were detected in the air near a petrochemical storage facility outside Houston where a fire sent black smoke into the air for days.

Firefighters on Wednesday extinguished the blaze at Intercontinental Terminals Co. in Deer Park. The fire started Sunday and destroyed several large tanks that contained gasoline and chemicals used in nail polish remover, glues and paint thinner. Firefighters continued to spray foam on the site Thursday to prevent flare-ups.

Authorities said Wednesday that benzene levels near the facility didn’t pose a health concern, but they issued the shelter-in-place order early Thursday because of “reports of benzene or other volatile organic compounds” in Deer Park, which is about 15 miles southeast of Houston. Several school districts also canceled classes for the day because of air-quality concerns.

The order was lifted around noon Thursday after authorities said several readings showed the air quality had improved.

Royal Dutch Shell told workers at its 275,000-barrelsa-day Deer Park refinery to stay at home or remain inside if they had already arrived at work. The refinery’s operations were normal, said Ray Fisher, a Shell spokesman.

Part of Texas 225, which many workers use to get to work at nearby refineries and terminals, was closed until Deer Park lifted its order. The highway closure affected an 8-mile stretch through the heart of refining and chemical country, snarling traffic all over the east side of Houston.

At a news conference before the order was lifted, Harris County’s County Judge Lina Hidalgo, the county’s top administrator, said light winds were helping to keep the vapors from spreading more broadly.

“Outside of that immediate area we’re not seeing elevated levels right now,” said Hidalgo.

Dr. Umair Shah, who heads the county health agency, said there remains a minimal public health risk, but he cautioned that the elderly, pregnant women and other vulnerable groups should limit their exposure.

“The most important thing is that the levels that have been detected are still not high enough for the level of concern that people may be having,” he said.

The county fire marshal, Laurie Christensen, said the benzene vapors may be escaping from gaps in the foam that firefighters have been spraying to prevent flare-ups at the site.

Late Thursday, officials with the nearby Deer Park and La Porte public school systems announced that all classes today were canceled for fear of a recurrence of Thursday’s shelter-in-place alert.

The Texas National Guard’s civil support team was assisting at the scene Thursday. The team was helping to contain hazardous materials and provide other assistance to emergency responders.

Environmental groups said residents who live near the facility have experienced various symptoms, including headaches, nausea and nosebleeds. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, long-term exposure to the highly flammable chemical causes harmful effects on the blood, including bone marrow.

The Environmental Protection Agency conducted air-quality tests throughout the Houston area, both on the ground and from a small airplane, and “measured no levels of hazardous concentrations,” EPA official Adam Adams said Wednesday.

Some residents who live near the facility, though, said they didn’t have confidence in the air-quality test results.

“I do not fully trust what they say,” Kristin Crump, who lives with her husband and two children less than 2 miles from the Intercontinental Terminals Co., said before the order was lifted. “I do believe what is in the air is very harmful, and it can have long-term affects such as cancer and things like that later down the line. I don’t think it’s worth risking that for me or my kids to stay there and breathe in this stuff.”

Crump, 31, placed damp washcloths over her mouth and those of her 13- and 6-year-old children Thursday as they walked to their car to go to stay with relatives elsewhere. Her husband later joined them.

Bryan Parras, an organizer in Houston with the Sierra Club, said his environmental group had concerns not just about the air quality, but about the potential effect on the environment and the fishing industry if chemicals from the storage facility or firefighting foam get into the Houston Ship Channel, which leads to the Gulf of Mexico.

“This issue isn’t over just because the fire is out. We want systems in place that will protect our communities,” Parras said Wednesday.