An explosion and fire caused when a heat exchanger containing flammable liquid propane violently ruptured is the focus of a new safety video from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

Process safety management program deficiencies ultimately led to the June 2013 explosion and fire at the Williams Olefins Plant in Geismar, La., which killed two employees.

Unplanned and uncontrolled fires and explosions are never welcome in an industrial plant. If you operate a dryer in your facility, read on for ways to mitigate your risk of fires and explosions.

Uncontrolled and unplanned fires and explosions in the plant are obviously undesirable.

 The long-awaited 2013 revision of NFPA 654, Standard for the Prevention of Fire and Dust Explosions from the Manufacturing, Processing, and Handling of Combustible Particulate Solids, has arrived. This revision was issued by the Standards Council and became effective on June 18, 2012. 

Whether through negligence or simply ignorance of proper and safe operating practices, hundreds — perhaps thousands, depending on scale — of accidents occur annually in industrial facilities, ranging from small chemical leaks to conflagrations like the recent West, Texas, fertilizer plant explosion.