3 Years Later, West Fertilizer Plant Blast Ruled Intentional
The Houston Field Division of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) says the fire that caused an explosion that killed 15 people at the West Fertilizer Co. facility in West, Texas, three years ago was intentionally set.
On May 11, 2016, federal officials offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person or persons responsible.
The blast, which occurred on April 17, 2013, injured nearly 300 people in West, a Central Texas town with a population of around 2,800.
The fire was reported at the West Fertilizer facility at approximately 7:29 p.m. It involved a 12,000-square-foot wood frame seed and fertilizer building at the West Fertilizer Plant, known as the Bulk Processing Plant, which had no fire resistance rating, according to the Texas State Fire Marshal’s 2013 report on the incident. The Uniform Fire Code wasn’t published until 1971 after the building’s construction sometime in the 1960s.
According to the report, the building contained bins of ammonium nitrate pellets – about 20 to 30 tons – and other bulk chemicals.
Around 22 minutes after the fire was first reported the explosion occurred, killing 15 people, 12 of whom were first responders.
The explosion left a crater 93-feet wide and 12-feet deep; more than 500 homes were destroyed, the ATF said. Three schools, a nursing home and an apartment complex were also damaged or destroyed. Pieces of debris were documented as far away as 2.5 miles and the explosion registered 2.1 on the earthquake Richter scale, according to the fire marshal’s report.
The cause of the fire was initially deemed undetermined. At a May 16, 2013, press conference, Texas State Fire Marshal Chris Connealy said that though the scene investigation had been concluded, the “investigation will remain open for purposes of conducting additional interviews, following up on leads, and the like.”
Also during the May 2013 press conference, Robert Champion, with the Dallas Field Office of the ATF, said there were three things that could not be eliminated as causes of the fire. Those were: the 120-volt electrical system in building where the fire started; the battery of a golf cart that was housed in the building; and an intentionally set fire.
In its May 11, 2016, release, the ATF said that along with the systematic fire-scene examination more than 400 interviews have been conducted. A review of witness photos, videos and observations was undertaken, and extensive scientific testing was conducted at the ATF Fire Research Lab in Beltsville, Md.
The fire was ruled “incendiary,” or intentionally set, after all viable accidental and natural fire scenarios were hypothesized, tested and eliminated, the ATF said.
The ATF, along with the State Fire Marshal’s Office, Texas Rangers, McLennan County District Attorney’s Office, and numerous other agencies are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the person or persons responsible.
The Associated Press reported earlier this year that the explosion caused about $100 million in property damage, according to the Texas Department of Insurance, and that insurance-related losses have amounted to approximately $230 million.
The plant itself was reported to have carried only $1 million in liability insurance. It is owned by Adair Grain.