Viesel Fuel, Martin County addressing lingering effects of last year’s fire

April 07--MARTIN COUNTY -- The cloud of black smoke that spewed from a blazing Viesel Fuel last year dissipated within days, but its effects linger.

Safety specialists, government officials and the Martin County-based business have spent the past year sorting through the physical and financial aftermath.

A state investigation into the fire is complete, as is a lengthy, $1.2-million cleanup. The company has corrected safety violations and is paying off fines.

County officials are taking steps to better regulate biodiesel fuel, a cooking-oil-based replacement for petroleum diesel fuel. There's a moratorium on new biodiesel facilities, and they're planning to hire a consultant, an expert in biofuels, who can help improve zoning regulations and code enforcement for such businesses that are inherently dangerous because they deal with flammable liquids.

Meanwhile, Viesel Fuel still is in business, operating in a limited capacity, according to county officials. Viesel officials didn't return calls or respond to office visits for comment.

Its 1.38-acre property -- at 3041 S.E. Dominica Terrace in the Manatee Business Park -- has been for sale since Jan. 21 for nearly $1.4 million, according to the NAI Southcoast commercial real estate agency.

What Happened?

At 11 a.m. April 1, 2015, a boom rocked the row of mostly industrial businesses on Dominica Terrace, just north of Port Salerno. When Viesel Fuel employee Frankie Mathis investigated, he saw 4-foot yellow flames at the base of a biodiesel tank, according a report by the Division of State Fire Marshal.

Mathis tried to extinguish the fire, but he evacuated the facility when he saw a heat wave move toward the highly flammable methanol tanks.

By the end of the day, the evacuation radius had expanded to a half mile, including 140 extended-day students from Port Salerno Elementary School. More than 40,000 gallons of vegetable oil, biodiesel and methanol had escaped, leaked or burned, according to Fire Rescue Division Chief Jon Belding.

In the following weeks, the Division of State Fire Marshal identified several elements on site that had the potential to self-ignite, according to a report.

On the day of the fire, a leak in the pumping system in the methanol holding area was identified, and a bad seal was replaced on the tank, according to the state report. Plus, fuel overflowed the tank where the fire began during the production process, allowing biofuel and methanol to come into contact with foam insulation, possibly causing combustion, state officials said.

In June, the Division of the State Fire Marshal ruled the cause of the fire as "undetermined" because extensive damage destroyed any physical evidence, but accidental, noting it found no suspicious circumstances or activity and determined no human component contributed to the cause of the fire.

In August, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Viesel $13,090 for safety violations involving items such as wiring methods and portable fire extinguishers. The company fixed those violations within 15 days of learning about them, said Condell Eastmond, OSHA's area director in Fort Lauderdale.

The company removed all contaminated material from the site, so the state Department of Environmental Protection raised no environmental concerns.

The investigation into the fire -- an incident from which Viesel employees were "lucky to escape serious injury or death," according to OSHA -- closed by the end of summer.

What still worries Travis Blain, co-owner of Mack Sails, two doors down from Viesel Fuel, is that no one knows what started the fire.

"Unknown, accidental is extremely disturbing," Blain said. "It could happen again at any time."

He was happy to see the "For sale" sign go up in the park, an industrial subdivision comprised of about 30 manufacturing, warehousing and supply companies along Southeast Dominica Terrace between U.S. 1 and Dixie Highway.

"It should never have been allowed to be set up in our park," Blain said.

Biodiesel's Future

On Jan. 30, the county received $1 million from its insurance carrier for cleanup expenses.

"We were made almost whole, and for us, the matter is closed," said County Attorney Michael Durham.

However, the county's investigation into how to better regulate biodiesel is just beginning.

In July, it enacted an 18-month moratorium on new biofuel facilities; the two existing facilities -- Viesel and Genuine Bio Fuel Inc. in Indiantown -- were grandfathered and unaffected. Petroleum diesel facility regulations will not be reviewed, according to the county.

"We recognize that we perhaps haven't done enough to make sure that business was safe and that its neighbors were safe," Martin County Commissioner Sarah Heard said in July. "That's the purpose of the moratorium. It's to study regulations that would do a better job of protecting us."

County staff earlier this year began looking for a biofuels expert to help them better understand the industry and prepare for the future, according to Growth Management Director Nicki van Vonno.

Regulations could become critically important: Biodiesel, which can replace petroleum diesel in traditional diesel engines or can be used as an additive to petroleum diesel, is becoming increasingly popular, with the United States producing an expected 12 billion gallons annually by 2020, according to the National Biodiesel Board.

Economic Losses

All biofuel businesses shouldn't be lumped together. Production processes and investments in infrastructure and materials and a host of other factors can cause safety levels to vary widely from business to business, according to Jeff Longo, Genuine Bio Fuel executive vice president.

Genuine Bio Fuel is in the process of expanding to Fort Pierce, although that wasn't its first choice location.

The company hoped to expand in Indiantown, but because of the county's biofuel climate now, it "wasn't practical," Longo said.

"It's unfortunate," Longo said, noting the new facility is expected to employ 40 workers.

Limiting biofuel operations could result in long-term economic losses throughout Martin County, according to Wilfred Vermerris, University of Florida associate professor who focuses on renewable fuels.

"The main drivers behind biofuels in general, are that they are produced from local feedstocks, whereas the majority of petroleum is imported," he said. "Biofuels can, therefore, stimulate rural economies, by creating job opportunities associated with the production of the feedstocks and their conversion to fuels."

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