THE SINKHOLE - THIS IS NOT GOOD

 

Texas Brine Co. LLC suspended cleanup work at a large sinkhole in northern Assumption Parish after the southwestern edge of the slurry area collapsed Thursday morning, company and parish officials said.

Two workers with Texas Brine’s cleanup contractor, Clean Harbors of Norwell, Mass., were rescued from their small aluminum boat by a co-worker in an airboat shortly before the workers’ boat sank into the sinkhole along with the collapsing earth, the officials said.

Assumption Parish Sheriff Mike Waguespack said the boat was tied to a leaning tree on the shoreline. The workers saw the tree begin to move and managed to get out the way, escaping with their equipment at about 8:30 a.m., the officials said.

Waguespack said an area of earth collapsed that extended from the shoreline to about 50 feet inland. The sheriff said bubbling in the sinkhole intensified after the collapse.

Texas Brine and the civil authorities expected the sinkhole to expand, but, despite their reassurances, I wonder about the unexpected that could happen.  I fully understand that the authorities don't wish to alarm people unnecessarily, but still...

In an earlier post on the sinkhole, one of my readers speculated that the butane stored in the salt cavern might be in barrels, but I see no mention of barrels thus far.

Crosstex also submitted a revised worst-case scenario analysis in its risk management plan Wednesday at the request of DEQ Secretary Peggy Hatch.

In a statement Thursday, DEQ officials noted that the cavern, which is a half-mile underground and far below the bottom of the sinkhole, cannot release its liquid butane contents without water being pumped into the cavern to push out the butane. The butane is also being held in the absence of oxygen. (My emphasis)

“While it is easy to simply convert the known quantity of butane into a blast scenario, that does not mean this scenario is possible,” DEQ officials said in a statement.

My inner pessimist which, though buried, occasionally rises and now thinks of oxygen somehow getting into the mix in one of those who-would-ever-have-expected...scenarios.  Surely my inner pessimist is way off base.

UPDATE: My inner pessimist is not the only one concerned.

Assumption Parish Sheriff Mike Waguespack said Thursday he is now concerned the sinkhole is close to a well containing 1.5 million barrels of liquid butane, a highly volatile liquid that turns into a highly flammable vapor upon release. A breach of that well, he said, could be catastrophic.

 

Map from International Business Times.