US gas-power station explodes

The damage Kleen power plant

Despite the safety precautions taken in gas-fired power stations, accidents still happen and in the case of the Kleen Energy plant in Middletown, Connecticut when they do occur, they can be devastating.

Reports indicate that five people have died and at least 12 have been injured in the gas pipe explosion that blew out a complete wall of the power station, shaking houses several miles away.

While the cause is not yet known, it is believed that a routine cleaning procedure preceded the explosion.

Speaking at a press conference, Mayor Sebastian N. Giuliano said that as many as 200 people had been working at different points during the day at the 620-megawatt plant.

Likening the explosion to a sonic boom, Mayor Giuliano said that 'something' had ignited the gas while power-plant personnel had tried to clean two of the site's gas lines.

The plant, which is owned by Kleen Energy Systems, was constructed to be one of the cleanest natural gas-fired power facilities in the world and still regularly has construction work continuing on the site. During the week, it was reported that as many as 300 or 400 workers are on site, working on the power plant which was due to be finished in the next few months and was said to be about 95 percent finished.

Gas power safety

The incident has already been classified as an industrial accident and not a terrorist attack, drawing speculation on how the explosion happened. After all, this isn't the first time a natural-gas explosion has occurred during a purging operation.

Last year in Garner, N.C., three people were killed, four others were critically burned and 71 went to the hospital when a blast at a Slim Jim meat processing plant owned by ConAgra Foods occurred during a similar procedure. Another problem during a gas-purging operation occurred in 2008 at a Hilton Hotel in San Diego, injuring 14.

Both of these purging procedures were linked to venting gas indoors "without proper monitoring or safeguards," leading the US Chemical Safety Board to issue a safety bulletin, according to an article in Occupational Health & Safety magazine.

While an official investigation is underway, the incident has highlighted the dangers of purging gas pipes and the confusion relating to multiple contractors on a site at any given time. Reports indicated that up to 34 people had died and 100 were wounded as the companies involved in the power plant's construction struggled to locate their people in the aftermath of the explosion.

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