Editorials

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal review of an explosion that killed four workers at the Tosco refinery in 1999 has concluded better management could have prevented the fire. 

The fire happened when workers tried to replace a leaky petroleum pipe attached to a tower while the unit was in operation.  

That released naphtha, a highly flammable petroleum product similar to gasoline, which ignited in a fireball.  

The workers were on scaffolding more than 100 feet above the ground, leaving them little chance for escape. 

The report faulted management for leaving the unit, an oil distillation tower, in operation while workers tried to fix it.  

Workers were unsuccessful in an attempt to isolate and drain the pipe, the report said, so they decided to replace it while the unit was operating. 

Managers should have been present and should have insisted on shutting down the unit, according to the report. 

The study makes recommendations for Tosco and Ultramar Diamond Shamrock, which bought the refinery last year. 

“We’re hopeful Tosco will do these audits to see if they have these problems at their other facilities,” said Phil Cogan, a spokesman for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, which did the study. 

The report makes a number of recommendations, which aren’t binding but will be sent to Congress and President Bush.  

The companies’ progress on the recommendations will be tracked, and Congress and other agencies can then take action if they’re not satisfied. 

Tosco did not return calls for comment Wednesday. Recommendations for Tosco include auditing safety practices for non-routine maintenance and management oversight of safety, as well as documenting the audits for the workers and tracking and implementing the audit recommendations. 

Recommendations for Ultramar include having a written hazard evaluation, having work authorizations for highly hazardous jobs, having management have a significant presence at the facility and auditing the safety program periodically. 

Ultramar spokesman Jon Ballesteros said the company, which took over the facility in September, already has taken steps to make operations at the site safer. 

“We hope to use the recommendations and the findings to help us to ensure that what we’re doing here for safety is all we can do,” he said.