Corpus Christi: Coast Guard Responds to Barge Explosion

Coast Guard News Release

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I enjoy my job but when i see pictures like that it makes me wonder, if it was human error equipment failure and does anybody know what company that was. I am glad to hear that the guys that were on the barge did not get killed. I to am a tankerman.

With little product in the water I suspect they were loading or cleaning. Maybe static electricity?? One of ours in 1986 at Piney Point, the fellows on the barge then were not so fortunate.

these incidents should always be considered a wake up call…I was working out of a dock in Kill Van Kull when the one recorded below happened…that time it took the 2 tankerman with it!!

I believe I witnessed this event. my vessel, Helix’s DPPLV Caesar, was in Ingleside moored stern to with stern facing almost due east. massive explosion. i’m offshore, can someone cut and paste here?

this pretty well sums it up for now.

Coast Guard crews survey damage after a barge explosion Thursday at Superior Docks in Ingleside. Bystanders rescued one man, who was thrown into the water when the barge exploded.

INGLESIDE — The Coast Guard reopened the Intracoastal Waterway on Friday and was developing a plan to remove a barge that exploded there the day before, a Texas General Land Office official said.
Texas General Land Office and Coast Guard officials monitored the area by boat Friday after the waterway reopened about 8:50 a.m., said Jay Veselka, assistant regional director for the Texas General Land Office.
It had been shut down overnight Thursday because officials worried the explosion may have left debris in the waterway.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers checked for debris Friday near the Superior Crude docks, where the explosion occurred, but none was found, Lt. Nick Leiter, a Coast Guard spokesman, said.
A floating barrier, or boom, was placed around the barge Thursday to protect the water from any residual oil after a 20 by 50 foot sheen was seen on the water, Veselka said.
No measurable amount of crude spilled into the waterway, officials said.
About 3 p.m. Thursday, two men were welding on a crude oil barge when a spark likely ignited fumes, causing the explosion, according to Coast Guard and Texas General Land Office officials. The two men were treated for minor injuries and released Thursday.
Leiter said the Coast Guard will continue to investigate.

[B]Which one of the following statements is true concerning the gas free status of a compartment?[/B]
[B]A [/B]The gas free status only applies to the conditions of the compartment at the time of the inspection.
[B]B [/B]The gas free status only applies for the duration of the work to be completed inside the compartment.
[B]C [/B]The gas free status only applies for a 24 hour period following the inspection.
[B]D [/B]The gas free status applies as long as the air temperature inside the compartment remains at or below standard room temperature.