Fire Triggers Chemical Release at Houston’s Arkema Plant
A fire at one of Arkema's Houston-area chemical plants burned for about half an hour on Thursday morning, triggering a smelly chemical leak.
The petrochemical company said that the blaze began at 7:45 a.m. and was put out by the plant's emergency responders.
"We have had no injuries. Property damage was minimal," said Janet Smith, a spokeswoman for Arkema Inc.
An alert notifying community members of the fire first appeared in the East Harris County Manufacturers Association system at 7:54 a.m.
"The event has caused a release of smoke and odor from our facility. This material has a strong odor, similar to eggs and may be irritating," said Greg Long, the company spokesman who authored the CAER messages.
The plant produces multiple sulfur-containing chemicals including carbon disulfide, linear mercaptans and tertiary mercaptans, all of which can smell like rotten eggs. These petrochemical ingredients are used to manufacture plastics, among other applications.
All three are dangerous when inhaled in large quantities, though their risk levels vary. Breathing large amounts of carbon disulfide in a short timeframe can cause chest pains, nausea, fatigue and convulsions, among other symptoms, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
The company said an outside firm they tapped to monitor air quality in the surrounding area did not find concerning levels of any substances. The facility's own fenceline air monitoring is still being analyzed.
Long said Arkema's emergency response team worked to put out the fire and "mitigate the event" at 2231 Haden Road, which is located behind the Wal-Mart in the Cloverleaf/North Channel area.
The company operates four separate chemical production facilities in the Houston area, along with one in nearby Beaumont and two in Dallas-Fort Worth. A different Houston-area facility located in Crosby was the site of a disastrous explosion when it was flooded by torrential rains from Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
Arkema representatives said they would conduct an investigation to determine what caused the fire, and to reduce future risks.