Houston: Officials with the flooded chemical plant outside of Houston that was rocked by a pair of Thursday explosions said they are anticipating more fires from eight other containers housing organic peroxide.
"This is not a chemical release. What we have is a fire," Richard Rennard, an executive with Arkema Inc. told reporters near the plant located about 25 miles northeast of Houston.
"Any smoke is going to be an irritant to your eyes, your lungs or potentially your skin," he added, saying the company is encouraging anyone who has been exposed to the smoke to seek medical attention.
Fire authorities said the plant suffered two small blasts and some deputies suffered irritated eyes from the smoke, but they emphasized the materials that caught fire shortly after midnight were not toxic.
The plant, in Crosby, lost power Saturday amid Tropical Storm Harvey, leaving it without refrigeration for chemicals that become volatile as temperatures rise. Arkema shut down the plant before Harvey made landfall.
Rennard said the plant had four layers of security for refrigeration including backup generators, liquid nitrogen and cooling containers.
He said chemical products in one of the cooling containers started to degrade, sparking the blast and fire overnight.
Local officials said the blast sparked a 30- to 40-foot flame. People located in a 1.5 mile radius of the plant were evacuated.