CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The propane explosion at a gas station in Ghent, W.Va., is drawing scrutiny beyond propane safety, and the accident has opened some dialogue about station safety in general, reported The State Journal.
A completed state investigation has determined that Tuesday's explosion at the Flat Top Little General Store in Ghent that killed four people was an accident, but that its trigger may remain a mystery, a West Virginia Homeland Security Director Jimmy Gianato told the Associated Press. A federal investigation continues.
The damage was so extensive that an ignition source could not be identified, though there were multiple potential ones, Gianato said. The explosion leveled the building, killed four people and injured five people. Three victims remained in critical condition, while two others were in serious condition.
Jan Vineyard, president of the West Virginia Oil Marketers & Grocers Association, said pumping gasoline is as safe as it can be. We are highly regulated by the fire marshals, the DEP [state Department of Environmental Protection], Weights & Measures, the fedsour industry is very, very, safe, she told the newspaper.
Vineyard pointed out that the explosion in Ghent was in no way related to the operation of the gas station, based on current information. She added that the DEP said even with the force of the blast in Ghent, none of the petroleum product stored in the underground tanks leaked.
The accident raises possible issues of local and national significance, and the community rightly expects a better understanding of just what occurred on Tuesday to cause such a devastating loss of life, said Carolyn W. Merritt, chair of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, in a statement. The board is still investigating.
There were an estimated 7,400 fires and explosions at retail gas stations between 1994 and 1998 in the United States, according to the paper, citing the most recent report from the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) website.
The Ghent incident, while caused by propane, still also brings to mind the oft-raised issue of static electricity at the pump. Carol Nolte, a deputy West Virginia Fire Marshal, said when static meets gasoline the result can be catastrophic. You're looking at the potential of igniting gasoline vapors or the liquid itself, she told the Journal.
Click here for the NFPA's Service Station Safety webpage.
Click here for the Petroleum Equipment Institute's (PEI) Stop Static information webpage.
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