Ammonia leak leaves list of questions

As residents return to Riverview, answers on the ammonia leak remain elusive.

By REBECCA CATALANELLO, ABBIE VANSICKLE and S.I. ROSENBAUM, Times Staff Writers
Published November 15, 2007

Workers, from left, Curtis Howell, Otoniel Rivera and Dantonio Brown of Traffic Control Products pick up barriers Wednesday at U.S. 301 and Riverview Drive. Officials reopened traffic on U.S. 301.
	[Chris Zuppa | Times]

RIVERVIEW -- Life returned to normal in Riverview on Wednesday, two days after an ammonia leak forced hundreds of people to flee.

Car by car, residents trickled back to their riverside homes with their pets, children and stories of nights in hotel rooms -- back to an area that had been bathed in toxic gas after a teenager drilled a hole into an 8-foot section of exposed ammonia pipeline.

Shriveled hibiscus plants, browned trees and dead koi were the most obvious signs of the chemical's intrusion into this quiet community. But as minivans pulled into driveways and families unpacked their trunks Wednesday afternoon, a chorus of questions rolled off the tongues of local, state and federal officials about who should be held accountable for the major and, most likely, costly incident.

Charges are pending against the hospitalized 16-year-old who deputies say drilled into the pipe under the Alafia River bridge at U.S. 301 looking for hidden treasure that wasn't there. He suffered chemical burns over 18 percent of his body.

With 335 miles of pipelines crossing Hillsborough County, lawmakers said more needs to be done to protect citizens from the threat of another breach -- whether from compulsive teenagers or terrorists.

In an otherwise upbeat news conference during which county officials announced the end of the evacuation, state Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico, blamed Tampa Pipeline Corp., the company that owns the punctured line, for "a breach in credibility."

Four years ago, a man trying to steal ammonia to make methamphetamine broke into another section of the pipeline,she noted.

"We believed you when you said you would secure it and that you would make it safe," Storms said. "In my opinion, two times in four years is way too many. ... We will hold this company responsible."

Glenn Howell, general manager for Tampa Pipeline, declined to respond to Storms' comments, saying only that she had stood by the company back in 2003 when a vandal breached the line near FishHawk Ranch.

Afterward, he said, the company put heavy-duty chains on valve boxes and made sure deputies knew the pipeline route.

He said he was sure the company would think hard about increasing security even more. But he said there is no fail-safe way to protect the pipe, especially against the unforseeable. "I would not have thought that a 16-year-old kid, on a Monday afternoon, would have been on a waterway, drilling a hole in a pipe," he said.

The 8-foot section of exposed pipeline that the teenager drilled into hovers above the river.

Howell said earlier this week that it was not protected against tampering because no one had required it. On Wednesday, he said the company has another reason as well.

"We have to be able to inspect above-ground piping," he said.

The company could protect the pipe with casing -- a pipe within a pipe -- but Howell said there was no guaranteed cure-all.

County officials reported constant communication with Tampa Pipeline during its 43-hour task of finding, isolating and shutting down the leak. But fire rescue officials said this effort was hampered by some erroneous information.

• On Monday, company officials reported that an automatic shutoff valve closed when the leak occurred, leaving only 200 feet of pipe with ammonia. Later, officials said they concluded the valve hadn't closed, and ammonia was still flowing through the line.
• Early Tuesday, officials reported that pressure in the line had dropped to 20 pounds per square inch, much closer to the zero pressure needed so that repairs could begin. But that was wrong. Hours later, it was at 100 PSI, a change officials attributed to an earlier false reading.

"We went to Plan B quite often," said Hillsborough Fire Rescue Capt. Bruce Delk, adding he didn't believe the errors were intentional.

Howell said Wednesday that company officials now believe the shutoff valve actually worked. It just took the ammonia so long to pass through the tiny breach that it seemed as if the line had not sealed.

Once the pipe was sealed, workers were able to tap the ammonia, mix it with propane, and burn it off until the pipe was empty, so that the breach could be sealed.

Sitting in his back yard, talking about the accident, Howell squeezed his eyes shut. "Give me a minute," he said. A tear trailed down his cheek.

Howell, 61, was burned by ammonia in a 1973 accident. He has never forgotten that pain.

"What this kid is going through ... his is worse than mine," Howell said, his voice choking. "The next four, five years are going to be rough. ... I would not want it to be my child going through that pain and agony."

The 16-year-old probably survived, he said, because the pipe had been mostly shut down for maintenance, or the pressure inside would have been much higher. The company will not be seeking restitution from the teenager, he said.

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Chief Bill Nesmith and Sheriff David Gee plan to review the emergency response and look for ways to improve.

Gee wants to know if the response time could have been quicker. After a phone conversation with the pipeline owner this week, Gee said the situation is much more complex than it seems.

Meanwhile, it remains unclear who in government -- if anyone -- is in charge of safeguarding the nation's lines.

Government officials said the brunt of the task falls to the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, but a spokeswoman said the TSA has neither the staff nor authority to make sure every pipeline owner prevents the possibility of tampering.

"Do we have regulations? No, we don't," said Sari Koshetz of the TSA. "There are guidelines, there are expectations."

Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor, said that may need to change. He called for a quick response from the head of TSA about security conditions here.

"A simple act of vandalism by teenage boys affected so many people," Bilirakis said in a statement Wednesday. "Imagine how much damage and disruption a sophisticated and coordinated terrorist attack could cause."

Hillsborough Commissioners Brian Blair and Rose Ferlita said that even though state and federal regulations don't require securing the section of the pipe that was vandalized, that doesn't mean it shouldn't be done. Commissioner Al Higginbotham said the matter merits an investigation.

The environmental impact of the leak remains under investigation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the county Environmental Protection Commission.

But 52-year-old Rodger Fowler didn't need to study the official results of river samples to know something bad had happened.

When he returned to his home along the banks of the Alafia River, a grim scene awaited.

Three small koi fish were belly-up in his backyard pond, roughly 100 yards from the leak site.

"It's the ammonia," he said. "No doubt in my mind."

Times staff writers Thomas Lake, Casey Cora, John Martin, Colleen Jenkins and Janet Zink contributed to this report.

FAST FACTS: Reimbursements

 

Residents who had to evacuate because of Monday's breach in the ammonia pipeline can ask Tampa Pipeline Corp. to reimburse them for food and lodging expenses, the company said Wednesday. The number to call is (813) 368-6122, said office manager Nancy Taylor. In order to be reimbursed, evacuees will have to bring original receipts and proof of residence in the affected area. There are some restrictions on what will be reimbursed. "No fur coats and no Ferraris," Taylor said. The office is at 5802 Hartford St. in Tampa. Hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

[Last modified November 15, 2007, 00:57:47]