Topic Page: US ITC terminal tank fire

A storage tank caught fire at Intercontinental Terminals Company's (ITC) Deer Park facility in La Porte, Texas on 17 March. The fire lasted for several days, spreading to tanks containing toluene, xylenes, naphtha, gasoline blendstocks and base oils used to make machine lubricants. A tank farm containment wall partially collapsed on 22 March, releasing chemicals into a ditch that leads to the Houston Ship Channel, prompting the US Coast Guard to close traffic on the water near Tucker Bayou and the ITC site. As clean-up efforts continued, shipping restrictions resulted in a backlog of vessels trying to get in and out of the area.