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Deer Park Petrochemical Facility Fire Creates Millions Of Gallons Of Waste

Associated Press
Firefighters battle a petrochemical fire at the Intercontinental Terminals Company March 18, 2019, in Deer Park, Texas.

The cleanup of millions of gallons of waste and polluted water is far from over four months after a large fire burned for days at a Houston-area petrochemical storage site.

The Houston Chronicle reports that Intercontinental Terminals Company, the facility's owner, must abide by a 31-page management plan that underscores how waste is sampled and identified, stored and discarded.

The March 17 fire at the company's Deer Park site, located southeast of Houston, triggered air quality warnings. More than 21 million gallons of potentially hazardous waste and contaminated water have since been collected from the tank farm and Houston Ship Channel.

The Harris County District Attorney's Office filed water pollution charges in April against Intercontinental Terminals Company, alleging the fire caused chemicals to flow into a nearby waterway.