Disaster

Yesterday we reported, that in a potentially disastrous outcome from the Harvey flooding, a chemical plant in Crosby, Texas belonging to French industrial giant Arkema SA, has announced it is evacuating workers due to the risk of an explosion, after primary power was knocked out and flooding swamped its backup generators. The French company said the situation at the plant “has become serious” and said that it is working with the Department of Homeland Security and the State of Texas to set up a command post in a suitable location near our site.

RBOB is tumbling near $1.60 handle after headlines reported Valero saying that startup is underway at its Three Rivers refinery and its Corpus Christi refinery, both in Texas, according to a statement from co. spokeswoman Lillian Riojas.

Blomberg reports that the company is working to ensure availability of critical transportation and logistics infrastructure to resume all operations. Houston and Texas City, Texas, facilities continue to operate. Port Arthur, Texas, refinery shut because of flooding and potential power supply interruption.

Update: According to the NHS, Atlantic Tropical Storm Irma has formed, and could be a Hurricane by Friday. With top winds of 50 miles (80 kilometers) per hour, Irma formed 420 miles west of Cabo Verde moving west at 13 mph, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in an 11 a.m. N.Y. time advisory.

According to Jeff Masters, co-founder of Weather Underground, computer forecast models disagree on its ultimate track but a U.S. strike later in September cannot be ruled out.

Five days after it first plowed into southwest Texas as a category 4 hurricane, Tropical Storm Harvey has made second landfall west of Cameron on the border between Texas and Louisiana, early Wednesday according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm, which has already pummeled the city of Houston with more than 50 inches of rain – a new record for the contiguous US, according to the Wall Street Journal – has left at least 18 dead, including two Houston police officers, and forced tens of thousands of people from their homes.

Authored by Caroline Baum via MarketWatch.com,

Yes, GDP may get a temporary boost from rebuilding, but there’s nothing positive about destruction

Once the immediate danger of a natural disaster subsides, and the loss of life, property damage, cost of rebuilding, and degree of insurance coverage can be assessed, attention generally turns to the economic effect. How will Hurricane Harvey affect the nation’s gross domestic product?