OSHA proposes $3.5 million in penalties after Channelview acid spill

OSHA proposed more than $3.5 million in penalties against BWC Terminals LLC, Coastal Environmental Solutions Inc. and One Way Environmental Services LLC after a Channelview sulfuric acid spill left workers injured and exposed major failures in cleanup safety. The case centers on a December spill that released about 1 million gallons of sulfuric acid and set off a hazardous response that put employees, contractors and nearby residents at risk.

The incident began around 1:40 a.m. on Dec. 27, 2025, at BWC Terminals’ Jacintoport Boulevard facility in Channelview, where an elevated catwalk collapsed and ruptured a six-inch sulfuric-acid supply line. Two people were hospitalized and more than 40 others were evaluated or treated at the scene. BWC said most of the acid went into a designated containment area, but an unknown amount entered the Houston Ship Channel. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said air and water quality were being monitored and that evacuations were not needed.

In a June 26 release, the U.S. Department of Labor opened three cases after the spill and found serious failures in training, respirator use, emergency planning and hazardous-waste cleanup practices. One Way Environmental Services received the largest proposed penalty, more than $3.04 million, after investigators said workers were sent into the cleanup without adequate training, respirator fit tests or safety measures. Coastal Environmental Solutions was proposed for about $392,500 in penalties, and BWC Terminals for another $82,750. OSHA classified the violations as willful, egregious and serious.

Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health David Keeling said the employers’ failures were a choice, not an oversight, and said the result was preventable injuries and environmental impacts. The companies have 15 business days from receiving the citations to comply, ask for an informal conference or contest the findings before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

A tanker-ship worker filed suit in January, saying he was about 500 feet from the facility when he developed burning lungs, shortness of breath, throat pain, nausea, dizziness and skin irritation, and alleging that no alarms, warnings or notifications were given before the exposure. Harris County’s Environmental Response Team keeps 24-hour on-call coverage for hazardous-material incidents, industrial releases and chemical spills, while hazardous substance releases must be reported to the National Response Center.