Industrial Accidents Triggered by Lightning

Natural hazards and disasters can cause major accidents in chemical facilities where they can lead to the release of hazardous materials which in turn may result in fires, explosions or toxic dispersions. An analysis of industrial accident databases showed that lightning strikes are the most frequent cause of major accidents triggered by natural events. As a starting point for the development of a quantitative approach to the problem, lightning-triggered accident case histories were retrieved from some of the major industrial accident databases to extract information on types of vulnerable equipment, failure dynamics and damage states, as well as on the final consequences of the event. The most vulnerable category of process equipment resulted by far storage tanks. Lightning damage is incurred by immediate ignition, electrical and electronic systems failure or structural damage with subsequent release. Oil, diesel and gasoline are the substances most frequently released during lightning-triggered Natech accidents. Toxic releases and tank fires are the most frequent final scenario associated to such events.

RENNI Elisabetta;  KRAUSMANN Elisabeth;  COZZANI Valerio; 

2010-10-27

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

JRC58198

0304-3894,   

https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC58198,   

10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.07.118,