The scene
It is Thursday, 1:45 in the afternoon, day shift in Perry's Awesomeness Factory, Building B. Night shift comes in at 2:30. In the R-101 room, the Thunderbolt kettle is running at reflux, about 180 degrees, with its normal 2,000-gallon charge of isopropyl alcohol. A contract welder is repairing a pipe support in the room under a hot work permit. A flange on condenser E-101 starts leaking. LEL detector LD-2 goes to 10 percent, then 25 percent, and the emergency shutdown trips. The Building B evacuation signal sounds. About 8 gallons are on the floor under the condenser, spreading toward the room door, and it is still dripping. Kara Thrace has come out of the room. Nobody has seen the welder come out. Outside it is 67 degrees and sunny, with the wind from the west at 6 miles an hour.
Scene facts
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When, where and what
| Day, time and shift | Thursday, 1:45 p.m. Building B day shift. Night shift starts at 2:30. |
| Where | Thunderbolt Solvent System room (R-101 room), Building B, at condenser E-101. PI-B-101 grid C3–C4. |
| Inside or outside | Inside. |
| What spilled (name on the label) | Thunderbolt (isopropyl alcohol, 99.5%), UN1219. |
| What it was in | Pipe: a flanged joint on condenser E-101 above reactor kettle R-101. |
| How much the container holds | R-101 is a 2,500-gallon kettle. It had its normal 2,000-gallon charge of Thunderbolt and was running at reflux, about 180 °F. |
What happened
| Who was there and what they were doing | Kara Thrace (Lead Operator) was checking the batch. A contract welder was repairing a pipe support in the room under a hot work permit issued that morning. |
| What happened | The flange on E-101 started leaking. LD-2 went to 10% LEL, then 25% LEL, and ESD-101 tripped. |
| How much is out | About 8 gallons on the floor. |
| Is it still leaking? | Yes. A steady drip from the E-101 flange. |
| What it spilled on | Concrete floor. |
| Which way it is running | Spreading under R-101 toward the room door. |
The scene now
| What you see right now | A clear puddle about 6 ft across under the condenser. Strong alcohol odor at the door. The welder's machine and leads are set up by the pipe support. |
| Did anyone get it on them? | No one splashed. Kara Thrace came out; nobody has seen the contract welder come out. |
| People on site right now | Building B: about 42 (day shift), including 6 ERT members, plus the contract welder. Building A: about 18. Building C: about 24 plus drivers. |
| Weather and wind | 67 °F, sunny. Wind from the west at 6 mph. |
| What is nearby | R-101, E-101, recovery receiver V-102 and pump P-102. Floor trenches and floor drains in the room. LEL detectors LD-1 to LD-3. ESD-101 at the room door. SK-1 and the AR-AFFF foam cart in the main aisle outside the door. The control room next door. Door B-6 (ERT only). |
| What has been done so far, and who has been called | ESD-101 tripped automatically. The control room sounded the Building B evacuation signal. Kara Thrace radioed the control room. |
Plans and SDS
These are the plans that apply to this scene. Read them to find what to do.
Maps
The red circle marks the spill. Tap a drawing to open it full size, then zoom in. The enlarged view has its own graphic scale in feet.
