Officials from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board said Texas can learn a thing or two in light of the tragedy in West.
Browsing: fertilizer plant
A handful of concrete slabs occupy the spaces where various homes once stood in the town of West. The newly erected beams of these houses rise like wooden skeletons, waiting for flesh in the form of floors, walls and ceilings.
The mayor for the city of West, Tommy Muska, has served as the face of his hometown in ways he never planned this past year. When a fertilizer plant exploded on April 17, 2013, and took the lives of 15 West residents, this small Texas town suddenly had the attention of the nation. Muska, mayor for less than two years, struggled with the devastation of losing his home while trying to rebuild a city covered in ashes.
On April 17, 2013, the fertilizer plant explosion in West killed 15 people — 12 of whom were first-response firefighters. Amber Adamson, part-time lecturer in the department of journalism, public relations and new media, wrote a book entitled “The Last Alarm,” which compiled accounts from just under 50 responders from the plant explosion.
When the West fertilizer plant suddenly exploded last April, the media and emergency response teams scrambled to respond. Now, nearly one year after the explosion that left 15 dead and over 160 wounded, a panel discussion and luncheon Thursday will spotlight the lessons, triumphs and mistakes made with the communication following the disaster.
Five months after the West fertilizer plant explosion, the Long-Term Recovery Board has begun the distribution of funds for residents affected by the blast.
At a press conference Thursday in West, Ronnie Sykora, a Long-Term Recovery Center Board member, said the roughly $3.5 million collected from donations will be dispersed after petitioners are assigned caseworkers and necessary paperwork is filed, such as copies of medical bills, insurance claims and contractor estimates.
Sykora said West residents have an estimated $30 million in needs.
The White House has announced several changes to today’s memorial service that will honor the 10 firefighters killed April 17 in the West fertilizer explosion.
Doors will now open at 11 a.m. and close at 1:45 p.m. or whenever the Ferrell Center reaches capacity, which is 10,284 people. In a statement released Wednesday night, the university said it expects more than 4,000 uniformed first responders to attend and are planning for a capacity crowd.
The center of the massive explosion at West Fertilizer Co., has been located.
According to Assistant Texas Fire Marshal Kelly Kistner at a press conference Sunday morning, the epicenter of the blast has been found and investigators will be working inward from areas with the least damage to areas with the most damage.
The number of casualties in connection with the Wednesday night explosion in West has been updated to include two additional people, bringing the number of total confirmed casualties to 14.
The bodies of 12 people were recovered Thursday night, just two days after a local fertilizer plant exploded in West, according to a spokesman from the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The investigation is still ongoing into the Wednesday night explosion that destroyed the West Fertilizer Plant and rocked the small Texas community. Buildings bore traces of the blast, black plastic trash bags covering the places where panes of glass shattered, some taped to hold them in place. It is a city showing signs of life after Wednesday’s disaster, which resulted in the call for a voluntary evacuation of the small town, population 2,849.
The Baylor and Waco communities joined efforts to help victims affected by the fertilizer plant explosion, which occurred Wednesday in West, 17 miles north of Waco.
Thursday evening, two storage trucks full of food, clothes and other personal hygiene products lined the front of the Ferrell Center as more than 100 students and others from the Waco community poured in an attempt to assist with West relief efforts.
The Texas Department of Public Safety and Attorney General Greg Abbott conducted a flyover and a ground examination of the damage caused by the explosion in West.
In a press conference held at 6 p.m., Abbott said, “the area along the site is total devastation.”
In a press conference Thursday, officials gave an update on the explosion in West.
Texas Governor Rick Perry has declared this a disaster, according to Abbott.
In a press conference Thursday, officials gave an update on the explosion in West.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said the families affected by the blast have support from officials.
Fatalities as a result of the explosion in West are confirmed, but a number is not yet known.
At a press conference held just after midnight, D. L. Wilson, Public Information Officer for the Texas State Troopers, confirmed that there had been fatalities but would not confirm a number. When asked on a previously reported death count of 60 to 70, Wilson declined to comment. Wilson did confirm a large number of injuries.
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Saddened by news of explosion in West, Texas. Praying for our neighbors.
Fatalities as a result of the explosion in West are confirmed, but a number is not yet known.
At a press conference held just after midnight, D. L. Wilson, Public Information Officer for the Texas State Troopers, confirmed that there had been fatalities but would not confirm a number. When asked on a previously reported death count of 60 to 70, Wilson declined to comment. Wilson did confirm a large number of injuries.
Following the news of the explosion in West, almost one hundred students and faculty from the Baylor community came together at a student organized candlelight vigil to pray outside of Waco Hall.
The vigil was started by Baylor Sophomore Class President Ben Prado, from Richardson, who tweeted to fellow classmates to meet him in front of Waco Hall at midnight. Prado purchased several candles and lighters and waited for students to join him.
There are confirmed casualties from the explosion in West, but not yet a confirmed number. According to some reports, the number could be as high as 70. Hundreds are injured.
The explosion occurred at West Fertilizer plant in West Wednesday night. Firefighters were responding to a fire at the plant when an explosion went off that rocked the small town. A four-block area around the explosion site is destroyed.
An explosion caused by a fire at a fertilizer plant shocked the city of West tonight. A fire at a fertilizer plant outside of the city of West caused an explosion that rocked the small town causing fires and severe damage to nearby buildings. A nursing home burned to the ground, but everyone inside the building was evacuated. An independent school in the area was partially burned. A house was also destroyed.