American Cyanamid Company; Kenner, Louisiana

Kenner, Louisiana | 1986-Aug-29

Initial Notification: NOAA/OAD was notified of the incident at 1500 on August 29, 1986, by the U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port, New Orleans, and requested to provide air modeling support. Winds were from the south at 10-12 knots, moving the acrylonitrile vapors and burn products away from the American Cyanamid plant and across the river toward East Bank of Kenner. NOAA's air plume model indicated that, under a worst case situation, given the existing weather, that the potentially toxic smoke plume would not cross the river with a concentration greater than 20 parts per million (ppm). In a similar incident, this concentration of 20 ppm acrylonitrile had been established by the National Institute of Health Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as a reasonable lower limit for evacuation planning. Since this concentration was not predicted to reach the populated portions of the East Bank, no evacuation was recommended. USCG district 8.