Article III. Flammable Liquids.[130]
Sec. 11-14. Storage of gasoline, benzine, naphtha, etc., aboveground.
Gasoline, benzine, naphtha or other highly volatile liquids
shall not be kept or stored aboveground within the city except
as hereinafter in this section and the subsequent sections of
this article provided:
(a) In dwelling, apartment, or tenant houses, not exceeding
one gallon in an approved metal can, free from leaks.
(b) In drug, hardware, paint or oil stores, or in garages,
ten gallons or less if in approved metal cans, free from leaks.
(c) In tailoring shops, printing offices, pressing establishments
or other establishments where the use of gasoline, benzine
or naphtha is inherent to the business, not exceeding five
gallons in approved standard metal cans made for the purpose.
No other can shall contain more than one quart.
(d) Outside of any building and not less than thirty feet
therefrom, not exceeding ten gallons in closed metallic cans.
(e) No gasoline, benzine, naphtha or other highly volatile
liquid shall be poured into or removed from any container in
the presence of any artificial light other than an incandescent
electric lamp. (Code 1959, § 11-14.)
Sec. 11-15. Bulk storage; restrictions on underground storage;
truck transports.
The storage or keeping of gasoline or any other highly explosive
liquids in quantities of more than ten thousand gallons
in any one container is hereby defined to be "bulk storage".
Except in M-2 industrial districts of the city, as now existing
or as hereafter changed, and except as provided in section
61 of article XV of Appendix II of this Code, the bulk storage
of gasoline or other highly explosive liquids is prohibited within
the city, and it shall be unlawful for any person to store,
keep or handle the same in bulk within the city except in M-2
industrial districts, or as provided in section 61 of the Zoning
Ordinance. The foregoing provisions shall not apply to tank
cars or truck transports in transit, but shall apply to the unloading
of tank cars or truck transports within all parts of
the city, except in M-2 industrial districts and existing nonconforming
bulk storage plant sites in M-1 industrial districts,
and it shall be unlawful for any person to place or spot
a tank car or truck transport containing bulk storage as herein
defined within the city for the purpose of loading and unloading,
except in M-2 industrial districts and existing nonconforming
bulk storage plant sites in M-1 industrial districts.
Storage underground of quantities not in excess of ten thousand
gallons, in any one container complying with the provisions
of section 11-18 with respect to underground tanks, may
be permitted within the city, except in any R-1 or R-2 residential
districts, R-3 multiple dwelling districts or B office
shop districts; provided, that if such underground tank is located
within ten feet of any building, the maximum permitted
in any one container shall be two thousand gallons; provided
further, that in an R-3 multiple dwelling or B office-shop district,
one underground tank may be installed to contain not
in excess of five hundred and fifty gallons, so long as such
tank is not located within one hundred feet of any dwelling
unit and is to serve a nonconforming business use; provided
further, that the contents of such five hundred and fifty gallon
tank shall not be resold to others; provided further, an
elementary or secondary school, whether public or private, located
in any R-1 or R-2 residential district, R-3 multiple dwelling
district or B office-shop district, may install an underground
tank to contain not in excess of five hundred and fifty
gallons, so long as such tank is not located within one hundred
feet of any dwelling unit or one hundred feet of any
building used for school purposes and so long as the contents
of such five hundred and fifty gallon tank are not resold to
others.
Truck transports shall not make any stops within the city
except for the purpose of making deliveries to wholesalers or
retailers or in the event of mechanical failure. In the event
of a stop for delivery, such delivery shall be made as expeditiously
as possible, and the truck transport shall not remain
at the place of delivery longer than is reasonably necessary
for the purpose of making delivery. In the event of a stop on
account of mechanical failure, the driver of the truck transport
shall immediately arrange to have such truck transport
removed from the city, and in the event of the failure so to do,
it may be removed at the direction of any police officer of the
city and the cost of such removal shall be recoverable by the
city from the owner and the operator of the truck transport,
in addition to the other penalties herein provided for violation
of this article. Such truck transport may be impounded until
the cost of removal has been paid. (Code 1959, § 11-15; 10-360;
6-5-61; 11-19-62; 2-20-67.)
Sec. 11-16. Unloading tank cars.
In addition to the prohibitions and restrictions set forth in
section 11-15, it shall be unlawful to unload a tank car of
gasoline or other flammable liquid which has a flash point
below seventy degrees, closed cup tester, at any point within
the city limits, except under the following conditions and
restrictions:
(a) The railroad siding on which the tank car is placed for
unloading shall be equipped with facilities for piping liquid
directly from the tank car to the storage tank.
(b) The pump required for this shall be of an approved
type and securely installed. If electrically driven, the motor
shall be of a type approved for use in hazardous atmospheres.
Remote control as well as control at the pump shall be provided.
(c) Tank cars shall not be discharged by the use of compressed
air.
(d) Tank cars shall not be unloaded directly into tank
trucks.
(e) Before unloading is started, the tank car shall be electrically
grounded in an effective manner. (Code 1959, § 1116.)
Sec. 11-17. Piping from unloading point to storage tank.
No pipe or other conduit of any kind used for the purpose
of transporting flammable liquids shall be constructed in,
under or over any public street in the city. It shall be unlawful
to transport or handle gasoline or other flammable
liquid through pipes or other conduits of any kind from any
unloading point as provided for in section 11-16 to any storage
tank or other container within the fire limits until after
an application to pipe such flammable liquid has been finally
approved by the city manager. No such final permit shall be
issued until the following requirements have been complied
with:
(a) All applications for a permit shall be accompanied by
complete plans and profiles of the proposed underground pipe
systems.
(b) Pipe shall be standard weight wrought iron or steel.
(c) Except within eight feet from the tank car and a like
distance from the storage tank, piping shall be buried a minimum
depth of three feet and shall be laid below all other
piping. Where pipe passes under railroad tracks it shall be
laid at least four feet below the bottom of the ties.
(d) Piping shall rest on a solid earth foundation or shall
be otherwise securely installed to minimize the possibility of
undue stresses at the joints from settling.
(e) Piping shall be suitably protected against corrosion by
coating with asphalt or other corrosion-resisting material.
(f) Pipe joints shall be made up with threaded couplings
or shall be welded or otherwise made up in a substantially
equivalent manner. Joint compounds used on screwed joints
shall be of shellac, litharge, glycerine or other material not
affected by the liquid carried in the pipe.
(g) Provision shall be made for taking care of expansion
and contraction in the pipe line.
(h) Shut-off valves shall be installed in the discharge line,
at the pump and at a convenient location near the storage
tank. Where the elevation of the top of the storage tank is
higher than that of the pump, a check valve shall be placed
in the discharge line to prevent the liquid from backing up
into the tank car. Long pipe lines shall be provided with
intermediate shut-off valves, the number depending on the
length of the line.
(i) Valves shall be set in manholes or have the valve stem
extended to a valve box having a cover normally locked to
prevent operation by unauthorized persons. Valve box or
manhole covers shall be plainly marked to indicate the nature
of the line which the valve controls.
(j) Piping shall be tested after installation and before
being covered, at a pressure of not less than one hundred fifty
pounds per square inch, nor less than one and one-half times
the working pressure. Tests shall continue for at least thirty
minutes without a noticeable drop in pressure. (Code 1959, §
11-17.)
Sec. 11-18. Tanks, etc., for wholesale storage outside fire
limits.
Outside the fire limits, as now existing or as hereafter
changed or amended, no tanks of more than one hundred
thousand gallons capacity for the wholesale storage of gasoline,
benzine, naphtha or other flammable liquids shall be
erected or installed; provided, that nothing contained herein
shall prevent the repair or use of any such tank for this purpose
installed prior to the passage of the ordinance from which
this article is derived.
Tanks shall be of galvanized steel, of basis open hearth
steel or wrought iron, of a thickness according to the following
table:
Capacity
(gallons) |
Minimum thickness
(gauge—U. S. Standards) |
Lbs.
per sq. foot |
| 1 to 285 |
16 |
2.50 |
| 286 to 560 |
14 |
3.127 |
| 561 to 1100 |
12 |
4.375 |
| 1101 to 4000 |
7 |
7.50 |
| 4001 to 12000 |
¼″ |
10.00 |
| 12001 to 20000 |
5/16″ |
12.50 |
| 20001 to 30000 |
⅜″ |
15.00 |
Tanks above thirty thousand gallons capacity shall conform
to the National Board of Fire Underwriters standards.
Tanks shall be riveted, welded or brazed and shall be soldered,
caulked or otherwise made tight in mechanical and
workmanlike manner, and if to be used with a pressure discharge
system, shall safely sustain a hydrostatic test at least
double the pressure to which the tank may be subjected. The
top of the tank shall be securely fastened to the top ring with
joints of equal tightness to those between the rings. Tanks
shall be covered with asphaltum or other nonrusting paint or
coating. All pipe connections shall be made through flanges
or reinforced metal securely riveted, welded or bolted to the
tank and made thoroughly tight. The use of wooden-top tanks
is prohibited.
Tanks shall be constructed entirely of metal, including the
top, sides and bottom. All openings shall be gastight, except
beneath the vent, which shall be screened. All tanks shall be
electrically grounded by resting directly on moist earth or
otherwise electrically grounded to permanent moisture, preferably
to water piping, and to the satisfaction of the city
electrician and the chief of the fire department. No insulated
connection shall be permitted. Telephone or similar poles or
other projections liable to act as discharge points shall be
kept as far as practicable from tanks.
If buried underground, the tanks shall be lower than the
floors, basements, cellars or pits of all buildings within a
radius of fifty feet. The top of the tank shall also be at least
three feet under the ground and below any piping to which
the tank may be connected. Except in lieu of the three feet
of earth, tanks may be buried under eighteen inches of earth
and covered with reinforced concrete, at least six inches in
thickness, which shall extend at least one foot beyond the outline
of the tank in all directions, shall be set on a firm foundation
and shall be surrounded with soft earth or sand, well
tamped into place, or encased in concrete. The tank may
have a test well, if the test well extends near the bottom of
the tank and twelve feet above the source of supply, and the
top shall be hermetically sealed and locked, except when necessarily
open. The tank shall have a vent pipe at least one inch
in diameter which shall extend from the top of the tank to
at least twelve feet aboveground level, and shall terminate in
a goose neck protected in the outer end by a 40 × 40 mesh or
equivalent noncorrodible wire screen.
If erected aboveground, the tank shall conform to the same
specifications and requirements as heretofore outlined and, in
addition, such tank shall be erected only on steel or metal
supports of sufficient size and thickness for carrying the load
to be imposed thereon and on a concrete foundation.
All aboveground tanks shall be individually diked, or the
entire property, together with contiguous or adjoining property
used for such storage or piping, shall be provided with a
dike or retaining wall sufficient to prevent the discharge of
flammable liquids onto other property in case of a rupture in
the tanks or piping.
Such dikes or walls shall be of earth or masonry construction.
The impounding basin shall have a capacity of not less
than one and one-half times the capacity of the tank. The
height of the dike shall not exceed one quarter the height of
the tank but in no case be less than four feet high. The height
and capacity of the dikes shall be properly maintained to afford
the approved protection. Earthen dikes shall have a
flat section at the top and shall have a slope consistent with
the angle of repose of the materials of which they are constructed.
All installations under the authority of this article shall be
under the direction and meet with the approval of the city
manager, and all such installations shall be made in a workmanlike
manner and in accordance with recognized standards
consistent with safety and good engineering. Except when
herein otherwise provided, the applicable standards of the National
Board of Fire Underwriters shall be recognized. (Code
1959, § 11-18; 6-5-61; 12-18-67.)
Sec. 11-19. Permits for installing storage tanks.
No tank for the storage of gasoline, benzine, naphtha or
other highly volatile liquid of more than ten gallons capacity
shall be installed without a written permit from the city manager.
The fee for such permit shall be one dollar for each
tank installed. (Code 1959, § 11-19.)
