‘Dirty snow’ blankets Marabella after Petrotrin refinery breakdown

MARABELLA residents who complained of headaches, vomiting, itching and nausea were medically examined by doctors yesterday — some four days after a white, powdery dust from Petrotrin’s Pointe-a-Pierre oil refinery — blanketed the nearby community. The emission, latest in a series of incidents at the refinery, has also prompted officials of the Oilfields Workers Trade Union (OWTU) to wonder whether the State-owned oil company was concerned about the welfare of both its employees and residents in the surrounding communities. According to reports, at approximately 5.30 am on Saturday, a steam failure at the number 18 utility plant boiler triggered a power outage at the refinery, which caused operators to shut-down a number of the refinery’s process plants, including the Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCCU.)

The shut-down led to the emission of dust particles from the FCCU’s regenerator unit, which was described by residents of Centeno Road, Marabella, as “dirty snow.” Joyce Joseph, said the dust affected her six children who all started complaining of itching all over their bodies, nausea, stomach pains and vomiting. “The dust settled on everything in the house. On the curtains, the walls, on plants and on the top of cars,” Joseph said, adding her children’s pet fishes died after dust got into the fish tanks. Joseph, who was interviewed while awaiting medical attention at Petrotrin’s health centre, said doctors prescribed medication to deal with the various ailments while the company promised to send “clean-up” crews to the affected neighbourhoods.

Meanwhile, OWTU (Petrotrin branch) secretary Shaffick Hyatali said the FCCU was not designed for frequent shut-downs. He said there was also no clear policy or procedure outlined by the company to handle emergencies like the particle emission and questioned why mobile medical units had not been immediately dispatched to the affected community. Meanwhile, an official of the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) said two inspectors had been dispatched on a fact-finding mission to the affected area. Petrotrin’s corporate communications department said an official statement on the incident was also being prepared for the media.