[StBernard] Worker dies at Chalmette refinery; DEQ, State Police responding to gas leak

[Westley Annis]

Worker dies at Chalmette refinery; DEQ, State Police responding to gas leak
Published: Thursday, October 07, 2010, 7:00 PM     
Updated: Thursday, October 07, 2010, 7:02 PM
 Chris Kirkham, The Times-Picayune 
 
A contract worker at Chalmette Refining LLC's Chalmette plant died Wednesday
night, authorities said.

The worker's death comes as State Police and the Department of Environmental
Quality are responding to a hydrogen sulfide gas leak at the St. Bernard
Parish plant that has been ongoing since late Monday. 

The St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office identified the man as Gregory
Starkey, 33, of Roseland. The Sheriff's Office said he was repairing a pipe
leaking hydrogen sulfide gas. Starkey worked for Team Industrial Services of
Harahan, the Sheriff's Office said. 

State Police spokesman Markus Smith also said Starkey was working in the
vicinity of the gas leak. Smith said it was unclear Thursday evening whether
the cause of death was exposure or was caused by pre-existing medical
problems.

Dr. Bryan Bertucci, the St. Bernard Parish coroner, said a cause of death
had not been determined Thursday evening. He expected to know Friday.

Rodney Mallett, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental
Quality, said the leak happened at the site of a previous leak that had been
covered by a metal clamp. He said the agency has set up air monitoring at
the perimeter of the refinery and that sampling has shown no readings of
hydrogen sulfide outside of the property.

The company is spraying water at the site of the leak to dilute the gas,
said Chalmette Refining spokesman Will Hinson.

"All the agencies have been notified, and we're actively mitigating any
odors that anybody may smell out there," Hinson said. "It's not considered
harmful at the levels tested by the monitors."

Hydrogen sulfide typically has a noxious, rotten smell and can cause eye
irritation and shortness of breath during exposure to small concentrations.
In high concentrations, typically in the workplace, exposure to hydrogen
sulfide can be fatal.

News of the gas leak did not become public until after the worker's death
was revealed Thursday. Hinson said the refinery notified all the relevant
state and local agencies, but he said the nondetectable levels of hydrogen
sulfide readings at the fence line did not warrant notification to the
community.

The leak comes after a separate accident at the refinery a month ago, where
19 tons of a white powdery substance called spent catalyst were released on
Labor Day. The refinery initially reported to the public that only 1 ton of
the substance was released.


The Louisiana Bucket Brigade, a local environmental group that focuses on
industrial pollution, noted in a report released last year that Chalmette
Refining has the second-most reports of accidental releases of any refinery
in the state, behind the ExxonMobil refinery in Baton Rouge. 

Anne Rolfes, director of the Bucket Brigade, said the most recent leak
speaks to bigger safety problems at the Chalmette refinery.

"One of the most revealing issues is that the problem came from a
pre-existing leak that they had put a clamp on, and that clamp started to
leak," Rolfes said. "It's really important to see the facility in context of
these accidents."

Chris Kirkham can be reached at ckirkham at timespicayune.com or 504.826.3321.