Simplot Canada Ltd. closed its ammonia plant in Brandon, Man., last week for repairs after an explosion in a furnace used to heat natural gas.
Farmers should not expect a sudden shortage in fertilizer because the company has large inventories of fertilizer due to the unusually wet, late spring.
Richard Osiowy, special project manager with Simplot, said the explosion happened after burners in the furnace extinguished, leaving a mixture of fuel-rich gases to accumulate inside. When the burners re-ignited, the gases exploded and blew apart the walls of the furnace’s upper section.
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The incident occurred at 4:30 a.m. June 7.
There were no injuries, no fire and no releases of gas outside the plant, he said.
Simplot workers are installing instruments that will prevent future explosions of this type.
A previous blast hit the plant last year, followed by a faulty pressure release that caused fireballs.
There have been no injuries in any of the incidents.
Thousands of chickens are slaughtered at an abattoir in Lint in northern Belgium. The chickens will be burnt after slaughter as Belgium tries to reassure consumers that meat sold in shops is safe to eat again. The contamination, traced to dioxin-poisoned feed, has sparked Europe’s worst food safety crisis for years.
