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The Baker Panel Report - ABSA

The Baker Panel Report - ABSA

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Executive SummaryOn March 23, 2005, the BP Texas City refinery experienced an accident that resulted in15 fatalities and injured over 170 BP employees and contractors. <strong>The</strong> accident involved avapor cloud explosion resulting from a release of flammable material from a raffinatesplitter tower and the associated blowdown system.<strong>The</strong> U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) and other federal, state,and local agencies immediately began an investigation. <strong>The</strong> CSB subsequently issued tothe BP Global Executive Board of Directors an urgent recommendation to commission anindependent panel to evaluate the effectiveness of BP Products North America’scorporate oversight of safety management systems at its U.S. refineries. BP accepted thisrecommendation and formed the BP U.S. Refineries Independent Safety Review <strong>Panel</strong>(Independent <strong>Panel</strong>) on October 24, 2005.In January 2006, the Independent <strong>Panel</strong> retained ABSG Consulting Inc. (ABSConsulting) and JL McCavit Consulting, LLC (collectively, the PSM Review Team) toconduct process safety management (PSM) reviews at all five BP refineries in the UnitedStates. This is the final report that the PSM Review Team submitted to the Independent<strong>Panel</strong>.This report summarizes the results of the PSM Review Team’s assessment of BP’srefineries located in Carson, California; Cherry Point, Washington; Texas City, Texas;Toledo, Ohio; and Whiting, Indiana. Four of the refinery reviews were conducted using2-week visits by five- or six-person teams. <strong>The</strong> Texas City refinery review differed fromthe other four refinery reviews. At the Independent <strong>Panel</strong>’s direction, the PSM ReviewTeam relied in part on a 3 rd -party audit of PSM systems at Texas City conducted under aSettlement Agreement between BP Products North America, Inc. and the OccupationalSafety and Health Administration (OSHA). In all of these reviews, BP personnel gavethe PSM Review Team full cooperation in providing access to facilities, records, andpeople.<strong>The</strong> Independent <strong>Panel</strong> prepared a comprehensive Scope of Work for the process safetyreviews, a copy of which is provided as Appendix A. <strong>The</strong> Scope of Work contemplated areview of the process safety management programs, procedures, actual performance, andprocess safety culture at the five refineries. In directing the PSM Review Team, theIndependent <strong>Panel</strong> emphasized that the reviews should focus not only on the processsafety management systems at each refinery, but also on the actual performance anddocumentation of performance.ABS Consulting’s project manager, Mr. Steve Arendt, led the Carson and Whitingreviews and participated in the other three refinery reviews. Mr. Walt Frank of ABSConsulting led the Cherry Point and Toledo refinery reviews and participated in theTexas City refinery review. Mr. Jack McCavit, the Independent <strong>Panel</strong>’s technical projectmanager, led the Texas City refinery review, participated in all of the refinery reviews,and coordinated all reviews with other Independent <strong>Panel</strong> activities.3

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