Talking and writing about the tragedy of the explosion in Bandar Rajaei is difficult, and even more difficult to convince someone to have a conversation about it. It is a sensitive issue and many people are concerned about incorrect perceptions and misunderstandings that are usually created in Iran. In this conversation, the focus is on the specialized perspective of workshop safety and its requirements, as well as the many shortcomings that exist in the customs of this port. Keyhan Moeidi, an expert in HSE (Health, Safety, and Environment) and workshop safety in Iran, emphasizes this topic throughout the conversation; a topic that, if followed, can save the lives of many workers and minimize the risks always present in work environments, and prevent accidents that, as Moeidi says, “always happen.” Moeidi was previously the head of the fire department in the South Pars Energy Economic Zone and also holds other positions, such as the head of HSE affairs at Khorasan Razavi Gas Company

You will read the explanation of the peace talks with engineer Kian Moeidi in the following.

As you know, the tragedy of Bandar-e Rajaei is one of the rare events in the world, but due to its occurrence in Iran and in a specific time and place, it has sparked discussions and various opinions. We want to discuss the issue of safety in this incident with you and hear your opinion. First, please address the topic in general so that I can ask further questions.

Accidents in the industry are inevitable. Eventually, an accident will happen. However, accidents should usually be analyzed with a root cause and effect approach, and in our analyses as safety experts, our position should be to have a preventive mindset. This means that we should not wait for an accident to occur in order to react. We should have the appropriate response and prevention measures in place before an accident happens. Now, why did this accident happen and what was the reason behind it? There could be various reasons which I will discuss. There is a topic called “Zero Accident” or “Zero Incident”. We do not have zero accidents anywhere, but we can have such preventive management that the number of accidents is close to zero or even zero. This means that sometimes we can use certain monitoring tools to achieve this, but unfortunately, this was not the case in this accident.

It is said that in the recent explosion, the main cause was a warehouse of materials that some say were chemical substances, chemical fertilizers, or similar materials. In your opinion, what kind of materials could have caused that explosion?

What was seen, in other words, in a moment those sparks that were created and the orange smoke that rose, the firefighters quickly realized that this substance was chemical, not petroleum. In any case, there was a dangerous chemical substance present that, as soon as a spark is created, a fire occurs and because there was a dangerous substance nearby, an explosion occurs and unfortunately a tragic incident happens. Therefore, there is no doubt that this was a dangerous chemical substance.

Why should a dangerous chemical substance be kept at the port customs for a long period of time?

Ports and docks are part of the organization of ports and shipping. This organization follows the international standards of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The IMO has defined a code for dangerous goods and has set guidelines and methods for their classification. These goods have specific requirements for storage, duration, and safety measures. However, it seems that these requirements have not been followed in Shahid Rajaei port. Firstly, this port is not mechanized and lacks automation to speed up the process of cargo entry and clearance. Secondly, sometimes the volume of incoming cargo to Shahid Rajaei port is high, which may result in the owner of the cargo mistakenly declaring it as a regular item, while it is actually a dangerous good with specific storage requirements. This could lead to additional costs for the owner for special storage and handling methods. These factors have caused delays and prolonged storage of goods, which in itself is a potential danger. This issue is not limited to Shahid Rajaei port, but also exists

Therefore, is it possible that a similar event may occur in other ports, potentially turning from potential to actual?

Every moment and every moment this can happen. Because we have a topic called Hazard or danger, which means that any factor or source that has the potential to cause physical and financial harm. So let’s say again that hazard means anything that has the potential and capacity to cause financial and physical harm. Now risk management and safety management say that we should always be careful that this potential hazard, which has the potential and capacity to cause harm – both financially and physically – does not become a reality. If we do this, the necessary thing is to identify the hazards, then come and assess the risk and then prioritize it for risk management. Because not every round is a walnut and everything has a risk. Now these materials that have a much higher risk, must be prioritized and ranked for risk management. Unfortunately, it seems that in this matter, there has been no discussion of risk management at all. Of course, I mention this because I am somewhat familiar with IMO standards and I know that these guidelines

Does the manager of H.S.A Bandar Rajaei have any responsibility for controlling, shifting, loading, and transporting this cargo or not? And is such duties defined in customs in general?

If this area or region is under the control and management of the Ports and Maritime Organization, H.S.E. as the employer must be present and supervise there. But apparently, this area and region have never been under the control of the private sector, so we have nothing to do with it and we don’t even mention it to avoid any sensitivity. However, it is clear that the Ports and Maritime Organization and H.S.E. did not have any supervision or involvement in this incident. But nevertheless, if in this situation, a part of the area is given to the private sector, it is stated in the contracts that they must comply with the laws, obligations, and standards of the employer and the Ports and Maritime Organization. There are chains of factors here, meaning that chains of factors are handed from one to another, and the incident does not happen by itself. There are people among us who say that the incident did not happen. You have also heard it many times. But safety professionals do

What has been the reason for it? Does it mean a lack of responsibility in terms of information and competence? Or are we facing a phenomenon of mafia-like form?

It cannot be said. I will explain it in simpler terms. Any company that has control over that location must comply with the safety requirements and regulations of the shipping organization and follow them, but it seems that for some reason they have not complied. Now, whether it was due to the type of contract or something else, we are aware. However, another issue that existed was the lack of self-declaration, as they did not inform customs of what goods were imported.

So, was the main reason for the irresponsibility and lack of competence and insufficient supervision or was it simply non-existent? Everything here has been handed over to each other to cause this tragedy. Therefore, considering this situation, it is possible for such tragedies to happen in other places as well.

Yes, that’s right. Now our other ports are also vulnerable to such incidents and we should not doubt it. Why? Because I mentioned that this potential exists. Unless we learn from the Shahid Rajaei port incident with this warning. Learning from incidents is a principle that safety believes in. We should not always be a lesson for others, we should learn from such incidents ourselves. Right now, with a look at this issue, there should be a fundamental review of everything. First, the non-operational defense attachments and the crisis management attachments should be re-evaluated. If the necessary training was given in this incident and automatic and self-extinguishing systems were in place and even if manual extinguishing was available, it would have been very easy to prevent with a fire extinguisher capsule and training for the forklift driver. Or if the private company forces were trained, they could have stopped it immediately before the incident happened. But there is no crisis management. Here, all

Uncategorized goods separation not done.

I presented it may have been to minimize costs, but there is a possibility of a minimum fire on a site. Now if it happens, what should we do? Should we wait for all the goods to burn and then after 48 hours, say it’s over? This is not art. In industrial areas, sensors always alarm and alarms sound when they see smoke, now in some places a group of people come manually and put out the fire, in some places they automatically put out the fire and do not let it end in disaster.

In the film that we watched and you have surely watched as well, when the fire starts and flames rise, the others run away quickly, as if they knew what was there and what the news was. It seems like they knew what was stored and what was in the containers, and it appears that they were aware of what was there. What is your opinion?

This is not right. These were God’s servants and they had no knowledge of anything. The forklift driver was the same. Perhaps even those responsible for the area and had stored the goods there were also unaware. In any case, reason dictates that if they had known, they should have at least taken some precautions. This incident was due to negligence.

However, the customs officials and the owners of the goods were definitely aware…

The owner or owners of the goods may not have been aware, but I believe they should have been. In any case, it was not mentioned in the declarations, which they should have followed if possible. This belongs to the private sector, but do the managers of private companies also have knowledge of the custodians and clearance? I don’t think so.

As a workplace and refinery safety specialist, the final word on this regrettable explosion remains, have I not asked? Although there are many unanswered questions and ambiguities in this regard.

Accidents in the world happen either due to unsafe conditions or unsafe behavior. Unsafe behavior is the same as human error, negligence, lack of training, lack of sufficient information, lack of attention, lack of commitment, lack of motivation, and many other things related to human error. These accidents are either related to unsafe workplace conditions or unsafe work practices. They are not separate from each other. It could be a combination of both. It is possible that both unsafe workplace conditions and unsafe behavior in work exist, which can be even more serious and dangerous. In this incident, the general and overall analysis is that in addition to unsafe workplace and environmental conditions, hazardous materials were not isolated and separated from other goods, and there was no fire alarm and extinguishing system. Now we come to unsafe behavior. The people present there had not received the necessary training. There was no supervision or monitoring, which falls under the category of human error. After the incident, we have a discussion about emergency conditions, response

They can easily do this task.

Yes, they can do it comfortably. Prevention must be done and this prevention means the same as HSE and compliance with safety requirements and monitoring the proper implementation of it.

We thank you for providing us with the peace line.