Update on major fire at Enterprise Products plant in Mont Belvieu
At approximately 12:30 PM CST yesterday, a major fire was reported at the Enterprise Products plant in Mont Bellvieu, Texas. According to eyewitness reports, the intensity of the fire was so great that trucks in adjacent parking lots were melting. There were also unconfirmed reports of several explosions being heard. Traffic on the highway in front of the plant was stopped by local authorities.
Enterprise Products said in a statement that its main facilities at Mont Belvieu were not damaged and remain operational, which includes the natural gas liquids fractionators, the propylene fractionators, the butane isomerization units, the octane enhancement facility, north and east facilities and the import/export terminals located on the Houston Ship Channel. According to the company, the fire poses no immediate danger to the community.
UPDATE: The fire has burned itself out (as of Wednesday morning). It remains to be seen if this accident will affect the pricing or supply of NGLs.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that one person is missing as a result of the fire.
"We're trying to determine his whereabouts," Enterprise spokesman Rick Rainey said.
Earlier, a local police dispatcher said that no injuries had been reported and that the cause of the fire is under investigation.
At 3 PM CST yesterday, Exxon Mobil reported that its petrochemical complex in Baytown, Texas, was experiencing limited impact from the fire/explosion(s).
At 3:30 PM CST yesterday, Houston CBS affiliate WHOU had pictures indicating smoke from the fire was now appearing on weather radars.
At 4:30 PM CST yesterday, the Houston Chronicle reported that the plant continues to burn. Nothing that is burning is toxic, a company spokesperson said.
Pipelines to the plant were shut down so no new flows come into the facility. But the liquids in the pipe are continuing to burn.
According to Enterprise Products, the pipelines weren’t near capacity so the fire won’t burn as long as it might have at full capacity.
There are no plans to try to extinguish the fire. Instead, the plan is to focus on letting it burn and cooling the area around it.
One nearby school has been evacuated. The main area of the plant where most of the equipment was located has not been affected by the explosion and blaze.
Enterprise Products’ Mount Belvieu location is a major propylene fractionation plant. NGL processing and storage also occurs at the facility. Stay tuned to Hydrocarbon Processing for further updates.
Photo courtesy Fox News-Houston.
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