Propane Safety Review - Chronology
August 2009
Shortly after the August 10, 2008 explosion at the Sunrise Propane facility in Downsview, a number of provincial ministries and regulatory organizations worked with the City of Toronto to clean up the site and investigate the cause and circumstances of the explosion.
These organizations included the Technical Safety and Standards Authority (TSSA), the Office of the Fire Marshal (OFM), Emergency Management Ontario (EMO), the Ministry of Labour (MOL) and the Ministry of the Environment (MOE).
Below is a brief chronology of events since last summer’s explosion.
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| August 10, 2008 | The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office begins an investigation into the cause and circumstances of the Sunrise Propane explosion. TSSA is on the site, providing support and assistance to emergency responders. |
| August 11, 2008 | The TSSA continues to assist police, Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office, the Coroner’s Office, Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Labour investigate the incident. |
| August 11, 2008 to September 18, 2008 | The Ministry of Environment works with the City of Toronto to ensure prompt and effective clean up of the site and affected residential properties to make the area safe for the residents. The ministry reviewed air monitoring data, conducted vegetation sampling and oversaw the cleanup and removal of material that could pose an imminent risk to the public and/or environment. |
| August 2008 | The Minister of Small Business and Consumer Services asks the TSSA to re-audit propane filling facilities. |
| August 21, 2008 | TSSA issues a Notice of Proposal to Sunrise Propane that immediately revokes its authorization to operate all three of its facilities. |
| August 22, 2008 | The TSSA completes Phase 1 of its re-audit action plan involving 196 facilities comparable to the Sunrise Propane facility. |
| August 26, 2008 | The Ministry of Environment tests plants in the area to determine the presence of any carbon material resulting from the fire. No combustion-product particulate was detected. |
| August 28, 2008 | The Minister of Small Business and Consumer Services appoints Dr. Michael Birk and Susana Katz to an expert panel to undertake a comprehensive review of the legislative and regulatory framework for the safe storage, handling, location and transport of propane in Ontario. The review is focused on the Technical Standards and Safety Act and Ontario’s regulations related to propane storage and handling as compared with internationally-recognized best practices. The panel consults extensively with over 27 key stakeholders from the propane industry, municipalities, ratepayers, emergency responders and the insurance industry and receives 31 written submissions. |
| September 5, 2008 | TSSA releases its findings of the Phase 1 re-audit action plan of propane facilities. The results are made available on the TSSA’s website. |
| September 8, 2008 | TSSA starts Phase 2 of its re-audit action plan. This phase includes all of the remaining propane filling facilities in Ontario. |
| September 22, 2008 | The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office releases the property to the property owners following completion of the on-site investigation. |
| November 7, 2008 | The Propane Safety Review Panel issues a report that includes 40 recommendations to further enhance propane safety in Ontario. The report found that Ontario has a strong propane safety system in place with many safeguards, but recommended ways to further improve safety and enhance transparency and accountability. |
| November 7, 2008 | The Minister of Small Business and Consumer Services announces that government will implement all Propane Safety Review Panel recommendations. The Minister writes to the Federal Transport Minister and the Canadian Standards Association informing them of two panel recommendations directed at those organizations. |
| November 14, 2008 | The TSSA releases its action plan to respond to the panel recommendations. The action plan can be viewed on the TSSA’s website. |
| December 10, 2008 | Amendments are made to the Propane Storage and Handling and Fuel Industry Certificates. These amendments address 18 of the panel recommendations. |
| December 31, 2008 | TSSA completes Phase 2 of its re-audit action plan. |
| May 15, 2009 | TSSA releases final report on its action plan to re-audit propane facilities in Ontario. The findings and report are made available on the TSSA’s website. |
| Currently |
The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office continues its investigation into the origin and cause of the explosion. The Ministry of Environment is responsible for the enforcement of the Environmental Protection Act and is currently investigating environmental matters related to the fire and explosion, including any violations of this legislation. The Ministry of Labour is responsible for the enforcement of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). The ministry has completed its investigation and provincial offence charges have been laid under OHSA. The TSSA continues to investigate any violations of the Technical Standards and Safety Act. TSSA is currently awaiting results of the Ontario Fire Marshal’s investigation to determine whether charges are warranted under the Act, which has a two-year statute of limitations. |
