Seventeen individuals, including Government Building Inspectors, Fire Officers, Infrastructure and Maintenance Supervisors and other key stakeholders participated in a one day workshop on the safe handling and installation of liquid petroleum gas (LPG).

The ‘Petroleum Safe and SMART’ workshop was held on Wednesday, April 13 as part of activities for the ongoing ‘Petroleum Safety—the SMART Way’ campaign, which educates the general public about proper LPG handling in their homes and promotes safe practices among the community.

The Department of Disaster Management (DDM) partnered with Sol Petroleum BVI to conduct the session which was aimed at providing critical information on the proper installation of bulk tanks and overall correct practices when handling LPG.

A Barbados Engineering Manager and LPG expert of the Sol Group, Mr. Julian Jackson,  facilitated the workshop and focused his presentation on the safety aspects required to handle the LPG inside the consumers’ homes and when transporting the product.

Mr. Jackson noted that the company has discovered a knowledge gap between the installation of the LPG system and what is happening on the inside of the home.

He stated, “While all companies that sell petroleum products must ensure that the cylinders and containers are built according to industry standards, the end customer, who receives the cylinder is responsible for the inside installation, including how the appliances have to be hooked up, the piping behind the appliances and how the gas and air shutter should be calibrated. If the system is set up correctly the LPG is a very steady and blue flame with a little tip of yellow. If not, something is wrong. If the flame is yellow, something is wrong because that colour flame indicates the release of a toxic gas called carbon monoxide.”                                                                                

Mr. Jackson said that Sol is now supporting and promoting the consumers’ awareness to help them understand the properties of the LPG and how to safely handle the product inside their homes and kitchens, because some of the observations they have noted can be hazardous.

He said, “This campaign is a safety campaign to make sure you fully understand the properties of LPG, because when you understand the properties you will understand how it behaves and what you need to do to handle an emergency”.

Deputy Director of the DDM, Evangeline Inniss-Springer encouraged the participants to help spread the messages on safe LPG handling.

She said, ‘We see this campaign as an important proactive approach to reducing the risk of injury when using petroleum products…and we trust that the information shared with you will be beneficial for you in all aspects of your life.  We encourage you to transfer the knowledge gained from this session by sharing information and advice with other members of staff and even with persons that you interact with in your personal life”.

General Manager of Sol Petroleum BVI, Liz Wyatt also emphasized the need for persons to share the information with others so that they too are aware of how to be safe with petroleum products.

Ms. Wyatt stated, “Almost all of us use cooking gas in our homes, but do we actually understand the dangers? What this workshop and the entire campaign are accomplishing is more awareness to Virgin Islanders and as you go through your daily lives and interact with others, please pass on some of the knowledge, because by spreading this word, we can all make ourselves safer”. 

The ‘Petroleum Safety—The SMART Way’ campaign is a three month initiative launched on March 1 by DDM and Sol Petroleum BVI.  It aims to increase the level of public awareness in the BVI on how best to handle petroleum products to minimise the risk of injury to self, property and others. The campaign is fully funded by Sol Petroleum and is being implemented by the DDM on behalf of the Government of the Virgin Islands.