Texas Fire Marshals Turned Away By Five Facilities With Big Amonium Nitrate Stockpiles

[applegrove]

Texas Fire Marshals Turned Away By Five Facilities With Big Amonium Nitrate Stockpiles

by Laura Clawson at Daily Kos

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/09/04/1236213/-Texas-fire-marshals-turned-away-by-five-facilities-with-big-ammonium-nitrate-stockpiles#

"SNIP...................................


In the months since the fertilizer plant blast that killed 15 and injured 200 in West, Texas, in April, the state has been trying to check for fire hazards at similar facilities. But five facilities storing 10,000 pounds or more of ammonium nitrate, the same dangerous fertilizer chemical that made the West explosion so deadly, have turned fire marshals away. And that's just fine, under Texas state law.

Not only can fire marshals not make unannounced inspections or go into businesses that don't want them there, but officials don't seem overly concerned about the refused inspections at plants storing dangerous chemicals:


State Fire Marshal Chris Connealy said "well, sure" when asked whether those facilities refusing to admit inspectors raised concern.

"In their defense, they may have a very good reason," Connealy said. [...]


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[applegrove]

1. So in GOPland it is okay to turn away any regulator? Really?

[Mnemosyne]

2. What's the 'fine' for that offense, I wonder? $1.5 millon? nt