Why PROPANE is Dangerous?
February 21, 2009
There’s a reason why propane-fuelled vehicles are banned from underground parking garages. If the gas leaks, a little goes a long way and a minor leak can cause a major explosion.
Propane – the main constituent of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) widely used as for heating and home barbecues – is heavier than air, meaning it will sink to the ground and stay there. Even a spark can set it off.
Propane tanks, whether they be a 200,000-litre storage unit or a barbecue bottle, contain about 80 per cent liquid with the remaining space for vapour. Relief valves on the tank open when the pressure exceeds the design limits.
The gas that escapes rapidly expands. The liquid contents of an average barbecue tank – could expand to more than 380 cubic metres of potentially explosive gas – enough to cover a parking garage 40 metres by 30. Vehicle propane tanks are usually at least one-and-a-half times as big as a barbecue tank.
Source: www.thestar.com
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NIGHTMARE parking problems
February 1, 2009
NIGHTMARE parking problems could come to an end as plans are put forward to build a commuter car park.
People living in Theydon Bois have not been able to park outside their own front door because of restrictions introduced to prevent commuters leaving cars in the area.
And commuters have been forced to drive into work rather than use the tube because there is nowhere to park their cars.
But a man from Epping could solve all of their problems with his plans to construct up to 280 spaces next to Theydon Bois tube station.
George Dilloway owns the former Old Forester Club land off Abridge road and decided the area would be ideal for a car park.
He said: “The council haven’t provided any options for car parking in the area and at the moment about 60 people are already dumping their cars there illegally everyday because there is nowhere else for them to go with all the double yellow lines. It’s a major problem.”
Mr Dilloway is hoping that Transport for London will agree to open up the entrance to the tube station to make the car park even more accessible for commuters.
He added: “If they expanded the entrance it could be on the same side of the road as the car park.
“It would also help ease the commuter problem in other areas like Epping where parking is also a nightmare. If you’re not there by 6.30am there’s no spaces left.”
The plans were welcomed by residents.
Clive Cooper from Theydon Park Road is unable to park his car outside his home because of yellow line restrictions introduced to stop commuter parking.
He said: “The restrictions prevent us from parking on our road between 10am and 11am. But that means I can’t leave my car there during the day because I can’t very well come home and move it during that time.
“If the car park solves the problem and means that these restrictions can be lifted then it’s a good thing.
“I can’t get the train to work at the moment and have to take the car, it’s nonsense. It’s affecting everyone and has caused so much disruption. Something definitely needs to be done.”
Alison Harvey from Cloverly Road in Ongar used to park in Theydon Bois before the restrictions were put in place.
But she was forced to use a friend’s driveway in Epping to get to work when the yellow lines were introduced.
She said: “I’m on maternity leave now but before I left I couldn’t find anywhere to park and had to use my friend’s drive. I didn’t want to do that forever and I was looking into somewhere else to park when I go back to work.
“It will be great if they do make a car park and will certainly put my mind at rest.”
But not everyone welcomed the plans.
A spokeswoman from Theydon Bois Action Group (TBAG) said: “The business plan for the car park is unsustainable, the car park would be of no benefit to local people, it is too far from the station and it will cause traffic problems on a dangerous stretch of the Abridge Road.
“It will not alleviate parking problems in the village as commuters will continue to park for free on our roads.
“It would have to be lit and the access road stretching uphill will cause a significant loss of openness on the Green Belt.”
People have until January 20 to submit an opinion on the car park application.
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LPG Automotive Tanks that May leak LPG Recalled
February 1, 2009
There has been a national recall of more than 13,500 LPG automotive tanks that may leak liquid LPG.
Axiom-brand hand taps on the tanks may have been fitted with an undersized O-rings, leading to the potential leaks.
The problem affects tanks fitted between November last year and February this year across the country.
LPG cylinder manufacturer APA is attempting to contact all motorists with the affected product.
In the meantime motorists have been advised not to refill the LPG tank, to avoid parking in a confined space and to contact their installer to have the affected part replaced.
Source:Â Â Â Â Â http://arafura.axxs.org
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LPG car explodes as driver lights cigarette
January 24, 2009
Peter Tidbury had just filled his Peugeot 607 with 40 litres of gas at a service station and was driving at around 30mph.
He could smell gas in the car and passed it off as remnants from the petrol station but it was in fact a cloud of fuel in the cabin.
Mr Tidbury decided to smoke a cigarette and the second he ignited the lighter, its flame sparked a fireball.
The windows were blown out and the bonnet and boot were thrown open by the force of the blast.
Nearby householders were evacuated for fear of a further explosion and the windscreen was discovered 50 feet away.
His clothes melted on him and firefighters believe he survived serious injury or death because the seats took the force of the explosion.
He had bought the car privately for £5,000 three weeks earlier and two garage checks gave it a clean bill of health before he got behind the wheel.
Mr Tidbury, 55, an energy-saving company manager, who needed hospital treatment for minor flash burns, said: “It just wasn’t my day to die.”
Mr Tidbury, a widower from south-east London, drove to northern England last weekend to visiting his daughter and friends.
After a website to locate a filling station selling LPG, he filled up in Monk Bretton, Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
He said: “I was told you get a slight smell of gas when you fill up so thought nothing of it and wound the window down to freshen the air and put it back up again.
“I fancied a fag so wound the window down again slightly and then lit up. I was doing about 30mph and as I lit the cigarette there was an almighty explosion.
“The windows went out, the bonnet went up and the boot went up just as you see in the Hollywood movies. I was belted in and braked sharply. I can’t remember this but I was told that I was directing traffic around the car whilst my suit jacket was still smoking.
“The fireball singed me on my face, hands and legs and melted my jacket lining and some of my shirt. I looked as if a firework had exploded in my face.”
It is thought a leak in the pipe from the filler to the fuel tank allowed gas to seep into the car which ignited when he lit up.
He added: “When I walked past that car to get in the ambulance I thought that was not survivable. For me it is miraculous.”
Mr Tidbury has ruled out buying another LPG car and intends to quit smoking.
Fire station watch manager Neil McQuillan said: “The car looked like a hand grenade had gone off in it. How anyone can survive an explosion like that when the car is severely damaged is remarkable really.”
Source:Â http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring
By Paul Stokes
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