BP-Texas City Disaster

In March 2005, 15 workers were killed and 180 others were injured in an explosion at BP's Texas City, TX facility. The U.S.Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released a final investigative report blaming BP for cost-cutting that led to malfunctioning equipment and overworked and undertrained employees, and OSHA for failing in its investigative responsibilities. On Thursday, March 22, 2007, the full Committee heard testimony examining what went wrong at BP and OSHA with the goal of preventing future disasters. More on the hearing »

“The Chemical Safety Board report paints an extremely troubling picture of gross negligence on the part of BP and OSHA. ...We can’t bring back the 15 men and women who died in the Texas City explosion, but in their honor, we can and must take steps to prevent future tragedies,” Chairman Miller said.

More about the CSB report »

BP U.S. Refineries Independent Safety Review Panel Report »
(PDF, 2352KB)

Related news articles:

Oversight of Refineries is Lax, Report Says »
The Washington Post, 3/21/07

Special Report: Texas City Explosion »
Houston Chronicle