What will we do when the emergency is real?
Notification systems in recent chemical-release incidents have not performed well, and the public deserves better
THIS is a test of the emergency broadcast system. This is only a test.”
This annoying message may interrupt you while watching TV or listening to the radio. But what if it interrupted dinner with your family? Or your sleep?
For some in Houston, it does. Emergency notifications aren’t just for PBS. If you live near one of Houston’s hundreds of petrochemical facilities, you face the very real threat of an explosion or hazardous chemical release. With these potential public health disasters looming, safeguards are required. Sirens and loudspeakers are prepared to warn residents and provide instructions in case of emergency. Tests of those systems are routine, even expected.
Such is life in Houston’s fenceline communities. But what happens when disaster actually strikes? Do emergency notification systems work?
Lately in Houston, they have not. Several incidents this year have shown weaknesses in our emergency alert systems. Our communities deserve better.
On April 7 and 8, fires occurred at Exxon-Mobil’s Baytown refinery and Lyondell-Basell’s southeast Houston refinery, respectively. No injuries were reported in either. Citizens took to social media immediately to share their experiences of these disasters. In today’s media environment, citizens often share what they’ve seen before first responders or news media even arrive on scene.
At Air Alliance Houston, we usually hear about these disasters within minutes. Our contacts on the ground tell us what they have seen, heard or felt. We know that social media is often the best source of real time updates in the minutes after an incident.
During several recent incidents, fenceline residents told us that they never heard sirens, alarms or emergency announcements of any kind. As one frustrated Pasadena resident put it, “They don’t want us to know anything. They just want to give the appearance that they do.”
Can you blame him? Living in Pasadena, he endures routine tests of emergency broadcast systems. They interfere with his daily life. When those systems fail him during an actual emergency, he has a right to be upset.
If you don’t live within earshot of an emergency notification system, there are other resources intended to keep you informed. The East Harris County Manufacturers Association maintains the Community Awareness Emergency Response (CAER) Line, a phone number and website that is supposed to inform Houstonians in the minutes after a disaster.
Even though we get our updates on Twitter, we often call the CAER line to check for messages. The Exxon-Mobil fire started at approximately 4:40 p.m. on April 7. No message was posted to the CAER line until 5:29 pm. The very next day, a fire at the Lyondell-Basell Houston refinery began shortly before 9 a.m. It was after 10 a.m. when a message was finally posted to the CAER line.
These might seem like quick turnarounds, but every minute counts in a disaster. Residents are wondering whether
they should stay put, take shelter or run for their lives. Every minute they don’t know is a minute of fearful uncertainty.
After a 10:15 a.m. explosion and fire at Pasadena Refining on Saturday, March 5, no message was posted to the CAER Line at all that day. One nearby resident told us that while she did hear an alarm, she could not make out the garbled loudspeaker message that followed.
These weren’t just “off days” for the petrochemical industry’s capacity to share information. After a hazardous chemical release occurred at the Air Products plant in Pasadena in 2010, management issued profuse apologies for failing to issue a shelter-in- place order for more than 40 minutes.
Houston’s fenceline communities are in harm’s way daily, and they need information to protect themselves. Fenceline community residents already have higher rates of asthma, cancer and other illnesses caused by exposure to pollution. These disproportionately poor and minority citizens also have higher uninsured rates and lower overall self-reported health. Must they also endure the fear and uncertainty of silence during potentially lifethreatening emergencies?
There is a better way. In today’s media environment, there are myriad options for disseminating information in real time. Social media is updated continuously. We get real- time emergency notifications from the National Weather Service and push notifications about missing persons. Are we really still relying on loudspeakers and call-in answering machine messages to notify the public about petrochemical emergencies?
No one system will work. Not everyone owns a cell phone or follows social media. But we have the technology to improve our emergency notification systems, and oil companies have the resources to do it. It’s time to prioritize the safety and the lives of Houston’s vulnerable communities.
Because next time, it might not be only a test.