Iran puts out massive blaze in petrochemical facility
A massive fire that broke out Wednesday at Bu Ali Sina, a large petrochemical complex in Bandar Imam, South-West Iran, has finally been extinguished.
It is still not clear what exactly caused the incident that started with an explosion in a key tower of the plant, the tallest in the Middle East. It is thought to be most likely caused by leakage of paraxylene, a highly flammable hydrocarbon. There have also been conflicting reports on the number of casualties. Some reports initially said several people had been killed in the incident while others said there had been no casualties.
In reaction to rumors, Iran’s petroleum officials have denied the possibility of sabotage. Iranian Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zanganeh, said on Friday during a visit to the site, that the blaze at the industrial zone of Mahshahr had not been caused as a result of an act of sabotage and rather erupted due to technical issues, which need further investigation.
A member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Majlis has told Jame Jam that the committee trusts remarks made by petroleum officials and considers technical matters as the reason behind the incident. “Similar and small-scale incidents in the past one or two months in other oil and gas sites show the petchem incident is caused by technical problems,” Alireza Rahimi said. He also called for a revision of safety standards in oil and petrochemical facility maintenance and more gravity on the part of officials involved in implementing the safety standards. He further termed the reactions in Persian Gulf countries as “unacceptable”.
The blaze, briefly put out on Wednesday, re-ignited on Thursday. The reserves of nearby tanks were reportedly emptied as a precaution. The key industrial zone on the southern shores of Khouzestan province, a chain of petrochemical plants, was reportedly evacuated over concerns that the blaze could spread. Mahshahr County governor Mansour Qamar had expressed concern that the blaze could spread to other areas, if not extinguished. Officials later denied any emergency evacuation reports.
Firefighting teams from Khouzestan province as well as neighboring provinces fought the blaze and managed to prevent it from spreading to the nearby tanks of petrochemical products. A crisis management task force was established to deal with the blaze, issuing an order to drain all of the reservoirs of the refinery after one of them, which was full of Naphtha, caught fire. Two firefighting helicopters dropped water onto the blazing facilities of the complex, local authorities said.
Bijan Zangeneh also rapped some neighboring states for their inappropriate reaction to the blaze. People in Saudi Arabia and some of its allies took to social media to express joy that such an incident has happened in Iran. Zanganeh described such behavior as “unfortunate”. “Unfortunately, certain neighboring countries have expressed joy following the [eruption] of the blaze,” he said. “A Muslim country shall not rejoice at the harm done to another Muslim country and shall [rather] express sadness,” he added.
Petroleum officials have pledged an early operational comeback for the facility while stating that sufficient reserves will not allow market fluctuations. Accurate loss estimates are yet to be published, but Khouzestan governor Gholamreza Shariati says a greater loss lies the time to be spent to rebuild the complex. “Energy complexes located in Mahshahr are connected in a chain and when one stops, the others will stop too,” Mehr News quoted him as saying.
While the incident set ablaze Iranian media during Eid al-Fitr holidays, with most new agencies and Telegram channels trying to keep their audience posted on the news flash, Iran’s state TV failed to follow suite, raising criticism from local observers as well as other Iranians who sought first-hand reliable coverage but were handed detailed reports on the Dallas sniper attack instead. A number of principlist media that covered the updates also found the incident an opportunity to hammer Rouhani’s administration, with Zangeneh as their main target.
In a statement issued here on Saturday, President Hassan Rouhani extended his gratitude to courageous and devoted firefighters, the petroleum companies involved, and all institutions cooperating to extinguish the fire. Photos of the fire brigades battling on the hot-weather site had already prompted public praise for their courage and self-sacrifice.