Rubbertown rail car being monitored

Tag : plastic rail

The liquid contents of the rail car are becoming a solid plastic ina process similar to one that normally occurs inside the plant,said Greg Brotzge, a company spokesman.
The Rubbertown plant on Camp Ground Road was shut down andevacuated about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday and will likely stay closed asa safety precaution through at least this afternoon, Brotzge said.
"We will not reopen the plant until we make sure the car has cooleddown and everything is completely stable," said Thom Barnell,another company spokesman.
To relieve pressure in the car, the company released some chemicalvapors from it.
However, company officials said they believed it to be a smallamount, and Louisville emergency management officials said therewere no reports of anyone being affected by the vapors.
The biggest concern was the potential for fire so close to thechemical plant, said Mike Brown, deputy director of the LouisvilleEmergency Management Agency. The product in the rail car was"extremely flammable," he said.
"Could it potentially have been a big deal? Yes," he said.
The car contained two chemicals -- methyl methacrylate and ethylacrylate -- used in making paint and acrylic materials. It alsocontained an agent that normally inhibits a chemical reactionbetween the two, officials said.
Brown said the inhibitor became ineffective when the rail car gothot.
Barnell said plant workers used water to cool the car and weremonitoring its temperature.
Despite the official assurances, the incident alarmed a leader ofthe watchdog group Rubbertown Emergency Action.
"To state that the chemicals were emitted in 'low quantities' isnot good enough," said Eboni Cochran, who lives near Rubbertown inwestern Louisville. "What was the concentration, for how long andwhat type of equipment was used?"
She said the incident raises other questions, including, "Will Rohmand Haas be penalized for placing its workers and surroundingresidents in harm's way?"
Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District spokesman MattStull said the company has 15 days to provide details of theincident and chemical release.
"After we see their report, we will measure that against theirpermit and the regulations" to determine whether there were anyviolations, Stull said.
Brotzge said company officials yesterday afternoon were stilltrying to determine the size of the chemical release and if therewas a way to capture the vapors. He also said an investigationwould be conducted.
Numerous fire departments and public agencies responded, and Brownpraised Rohm and Haas for its handling of the matter.
"I think Rohm and Haas was proactive," he said.
Reporter Antwon Pinkston contributed to this story. Reporter JamesBruggers can be reached at (502) 582-4645.