It has been my experience that small towns like West do not have many ordinances to deal with this kind of thing. Some do not make it mandatory for a restaurant to have an Ansul System under their ventahoods. With the Insurance Industry, they won’t write the coverage though. There is no way a fertilizer plant should be close to any residential area. This was a prescription for disaster.
Agent,
We agree again! I’ve seen many commercial kitchens without the automatic fire extinguishing system in TX. Though, we will write it if they can show it has limited use and the filters are professionally cleaned on a regular basis.
So, with us agreeing again, are dogs and cats going to start living together? What in the heck is going on these days? Have a good rest of the week. I will continue to keep those families and community in general in my prayers.
Planet, I have had several dog/cat combinations in my household for the past 30 years and they all got along with each other. By the way, I saw a picture yesterday taken from Arlington, Tx which is 80 miles north of West and the plume from the explosion looked much like a small atomic bomb. It is a wonder that more were not killed. Ammonium Nitrate is bad news. Surely, with chemical science they can invent something which will still fertilize effectively without using this combination.
Why were so many homes, businesses and other community buildings allowed to be built so close to this problematic fertilizer plant? Where were the zoning regulations?
The fertilizer plant was an economic engine for that community.
I assume that zoning is not an issue when there are very few viable options for a jobs or business placement. I also questioned the zoning rules at first, but we must also accept the fact that this factory was given a LOT of leeway because of it’s economical importance.
In looking at the plant in West, Texas, there was so much open land that these were conscious choices to build so close to an existing hazard. Zoning should have recognized that. This is not a major city in which very little land is available. This was foreseeable.
Many of these types of fertilizer facilities were built in the 1950’s to early 60’s. It appears to me that the school was much newer than the fertilizer plant. The nursing home looks to be newer as well. Perhaps the school and nursing homes were built in the wrong spot, not the fertilizer plant that probably provided a dozen plus jobs, and generated $10’s of millions in economic activity. Agriculture is the engine that drives rural America.
Thoughts and prayers to all those who are hurting because of this horrible incident.
Farm Boy — we are in agreement that the fertilizer plant existed before the homes and schools. Zoning should have precluded any buidling around it. One can only hope that this will be a wake up call for future planning. Sadly, it does not help those who experienced this.
There is also one very glaring fact that is not openly disclosed here. The Mayor had 3x roles, he was also the town’s volunteer FD Chief AND he was running the only insurance agency in town. He was not some layman, he must have had some grasp of the risks involved with the zoning.
OK you ag. P & C producers. What would the typical CGL or General Liability limits be fore the fertilizer facility? Wouldn’t the trucks carrying the haz-mat stuff be required to carry at least $10 mil>?
I think what he means is that if haz-mat trucks are forced to carry at least $10 mil in coverages, then tha factory should be forced to carry more. However, that is not true. As I ready in another article, insurance is not compulsory and there are not filings required for insurance. Truckers, on the other hand, are required to file with DOT. Fertilizer plants would technically be handled by DHS.
Sorry for massive typos!! I meant to say that, as I read in another article, insurance is not compulsory for these factories and there are no filings in place with the Texas or DHS.
$1M occurrence and no blanket required, though, most do buy a blanket. I typically see $5M carried on top of the $1M. Not hardly enough. Maybe this will be a wake-up call to the industry. In general, too many corners are being cut in comm’l ag. The industry continues to kill with grain entrapments, LP explosions (lack of leak checks and equipment updating), anhydrous leaks, lack of fall protection, railcar incidents, the list goes on. This industry keeps OSHA extremely busy. I’m 30 hour trained myself which has helped from a risk control perspective. I’m guessing we are going to find this tragedy could have been at least minimized if not avoided all together.
Dang…how can someone “Dislike” Captain Planets comments??? I swear if he commented “kittens are cute” or “the sky is blue” you guys would “dislike” just because it was “Captain Planet”!! …confirms my theory that if President Obama discovered the cure for cancer with one arm and rescued innocent children and Grandmas with the other arm, you all would still hate him.
I would agree that key words, as of late, Planet has been better.
Your comparison to Obama…Doesn’t make sense.
He hasn’t discovered the cure for cancer. I could list hundreds of ways he has harmed the middle class.
I don’t bash him because he’s Obama. I take his actions, and bash those.
Your comment is evidence of the fact that despite how many facts you hear about Obama, you will believe that Obama is rescuing innocent children and Grandmas, and is doing nothing wrong.
It’s not me disliking Planet’s comments even though we disagree on most issues facing the country. In this blog, he actually makes some sense and I commend him for it. Bob and I do not hate Obama, we just hate the policies he has instituted and his general incompetence about how to run the country.
We specialize in Ag risks, and many of these are in rural communities, in close proximity to aging residential and commercial and most generally built along old rail road lines. Most often in the city limits. General limits probably 3 to 6 mil including blanket and underlying limits with limited polution coverage depending on carrier.
Why were so many homes, schools and businesses allowed to be built so close to the fertilizer plant? Why was zoning not taken into consideration?
It has been my experience that small towns like West do not have many ordinances to deal with this kind of thing. Some do not make it mandatory for a restaurant to have an Ansul System under their ventahoods. With the Insurance Industry, they won’t write the coverage though. There is no way a fertilizer plant should be close to any residential area. This was a prescription for disaster.
Agent,
We agree again! I’ve seen many commercial kitchens without the automatic fire extinguishing system in TX. Though, we will write it if they can show it has limited use and the filters are professionally cleaned on a regular basis.
So, with us agreeing again, are dogs and cats going to start living together? What in the heck is going on these days? Have a good rest of the week. I will continue to keep those families and community in general in my prayers.
Planet, I have had several dog/cat combinations in my household for the past 30 years and they all got along with each other. By the way, I saw a picture yesterday taken from Arlington, Tx which is 80 miles north of West and the plume from the explosion looked much like a small atomic bomb. It is a wonder that more were not killed. Ammonium Nitrate is bad news. Surely, with chemical science they can invent something which will still fertilize effectively without using this combination.
Why were so many homes, businesses and other community buildings allowed to be built so close to this problematic fertilizer plant? Where were the zoning regulations?
The fertilizer plant was an economic engine for that community.
I assume that zoning is not an issue when there are very few viable options for a jobs or business placement. I also questioned the zoning rules at first, but we must also accept the fact that this factory was given a LOT of leeway because of it’s economical importance.
In looking at the plant in West, Texas, there was so much open land that these were conscious choices to build so close to an existing hazard. Zoning should have recognized that. This is not a major city in which very little land is available. This was foreseeable.
Many of these types of fertilizer facilities were built in the 1950’s to early 60’s. It appears to me that the school was much newer than the fertilizer plant. The nursing home looks to be newer as well. Perhaps the school and nursing homes were built in the wrong spot, not the fertilizer plant that probably provided a dozen plus jobs, and generated $10’s of millions in economic activity. Agriculture is the engine that drives rural America.
Thoughts and prayers to all those who are hurting because of this horrible incident.
Farm Boy — we are in agreement that the fertilizer plant existed before the homes and schools. Zoning should have precluded any buidling around it. One can only hope that this will be a wake up call for future planning. Sadly, it does not help those who experienced this.
More government regulation in Texas? Where have you been for the past 8 years?
There is also one very glaring fact that is not openly disclosed here. The Mayor had 3x roles, he was also the town’s volunteer FD Chief AND he was running the only insurance agency in town. He was not some layman, he must have had some grasp of the risks involved with the zoning.
OK you ag. P & C producers. What would the typical CGL or General Liability limits be fore the fertilizer facility? Wouldn’t the trucks carrying the haz-mat stuff be required to carry at least $10 mil>?
What does auto liability have to do with this?
I think what he means is that if haz-mat trucks are forced to carry at least $10 mil in coverages, then tha factory should be forced to carry more. However, that is not true. As I ready in another article, insurance is not compulsory and there are not filings required for insurance. Truckers, on the other hand, are required to file with DOT. Fertilizer plants would technically be handled by DHS.
Sorry for massive typos!! I meant to say that, as I read in another article, insurance is not compulsory for these factories and there are no filings in place with the Texas or DHS.
$1M occurrence and no blanket required, though, most do buy a blanket. I typically see $5M carried on top of the $1M. Not hardly enough. Maybe this will be a wake-up call to the industry. In general, too many corners are being cut in comm’l ag. The industry continues to kill with grain entrapments, LP explosions (lack of leak checks and equipment updating), anhydrous leaks, lack of fall protection, railcar incidents, the list goes on. This industry keeps OSHA extremely busy. I’m 30 hour trained myself which has helped from a risk control perspective. I’m guessing we are going to find this tragedy could have been at least minimized if not avoided all together.
*I mean umbrella, not blanket, sorry, hadn’t had my first cup of coffee yet.
Dang…how can someone “Dislike” Captain Planets comments??? I swear if he commented “kittens are cute” or “the sky is blue” you guys would “dislike” just because it was “Captain Planet”!! …confirms my theory that if President Obama discovered the cure for cancer with one arm and rescued innocent children and Grandmas with the other arm, you all would still hate him.
I would agree that key words, as of late, Planet has been better.
Your comparison to Obama…Doesn’t make sense.
He hasn’t discovered the cure for cancer. I could list hundreds of ways he has harmed the middle class.
I don’t bash him because he’s Obama. I take his actions, and bash those.
Your comment is evidence of the fact that despite how many facts you hear about Obama, you will believe that Obama is rescuing innocent children and Grandmas, and is doing nothing wrong.
You need to brush up on your reading comprehension and simple logic, Bob.
It’s not me disliking Planet’s comments even though we disagree on most issues facing the country. In this blog, he actually makes some sense and I commend him for it. Bob and I do not hate Obama, we just hate the policies he has instituted and his general incompetence about how to run the country.
Does anyone know what carrier is on the hook for this one?
We specialize in Ag risks, and many of these are in rural communities, in close proximity to aging residential and commercial and most generally built along old rail road lines. Most often in the city limits. General limits probably 3 to 6 mil including blanket and underlying limits with limited polution coverage depending on carrier.
Continental Western I hear was the carrier. Hate to throw that out as it is second hand.
Let me retract that as it was surely ungrounded specultation.