Shutdown order costs IRPC 1.3 million liters of production per day

RAYONG, 11 June 2014 (NNT) – The governor of Rayong has ordered a 90-day shutdown of an IRPC Plc.'s plant in the province after Monday's explosion and fire. Meanwhile, a number of students at a school near one of the industrial estates in the province was taken to hospital after inhaling foul-smelling odor.

In the latest report of pungent odor affecting the lives of people living near Rayong's industrial estates, 5 students had to be taken to Maptaphut Hospital after having inhaled fumes originating from an industrial plant. 4 of the students have been discharged, but doctors decided to keep one student who had lost consciousness inhaling the fumes, in the hospital.

Sarawut Simueang, a student at the school, said he smelled the odor since coming to school in the morning. The odor, which smelled like rotten durian, intensified as time progressed and he started to become dizzy and his nose and throat started to burn.

The school director ordered classes to be suspended for the day.

Meanwhile, the governor of Rayong province has ordered the IRPC refinery's sub-unit involved in Monday's explosion and fire to halt operations for 90 days. 3 other sub-units were also ordered shut. IRPC Plc.'s diesel and benzene fuels production will drop by 1.3 million liters per day because of the shutdowns.


-- NNT 2014-06-11

Can one really put a price on safety and peoples lives? No

The company ( I.R.P.C.) has both a moral and social duty to protect the people and the environment.

Ooop's forgot, this is Thailand.

The emphasis here seems to be on the fact that IRPC will lose production, rather than making sure that IRPC will move heaven and earth to ensure that their safety procedures are tightened up and their production will no longer endanger the lives of local people.

any ammonia plants there?

And they said the air was fine! <deleted>ers. I knew it!

any ammonia plants there?

Ammonia is a by product of the refining process......most likely pipes or tankage blew and released the gas.

The symptoms described are similar to this...

Used to teach at a school not too far from the refinery. I grew up in LA, not very far from refineries. They are inherently dangerous and even with the best safety procedures, accidents can happen. Lucky there were no serious injuries.

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Thailand - the 'hub' of foul odours.....

Can one really put a price on safety and peoples lives? No

Every company and every country and every person in the world puts a price on peoples' lives.

Otherwise, we'd have a hospital on every corner, and no cars driving over 20 MPH.

But that wouldn't be practical, so it's a balance.

Perhaps they'll find the shutdown rather more expensive than investing in proper controls.