KEY POINTS:
Fire investigators trying to pinpoint the cause of the Tamahere coolstore explosion are checking if authorities knew a highly flammable gas was being used at the site.
Waikato Fire Service deputy commander Roy Breeze confirmed they had scoured Waikato District Council documents to see if owner Icepak had permission to use LPG instead of a less volatile gas.
The Herald on Sunday viewed council files last week and found no documents approving the switch.
Icepak director Wayne Grattan said the council did not need to be told of any change and was confident the coolstore complied with regulations.
The company was granted resource consent in 2002 to build two new coolstores on the Tamahere site, on the southern outskirts of Hamilton, on the basis that R22 (freon gas) would be used to freeze stored goods.
Freon gas is non-toxic and not classified as hazardous by the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA), unlike LPG.
According to the resource consent documents, no "hazardous substances" should be stored or used on-site without council approval.
A council spokeswoman said Herald on Sunday questions about whether Icepak needed resource consent to change to a hazardous substance could not be answered until next week.
The Herald on Sunday was the first to reveal a propane gas leak fuelled the 2000km/h fireball, which killed firefighter Derek Lovell and seriously injured six others on April 5.
A 30-year-veteran of the gas industry, who asked to not be named, said he was "appalled" Icepak switched to LPG, or propane.
He said a propane vapour explosion was one of the worst types of "hydrocarbon ignitions" due to its volatility.
"There darn well should not be use of propane in or near to residential areas, if at all."
Concerns about site safety were also raised by Arnold Koppens, the man who founded Icepak.
Five years ago, well after he had sold the company, Koppens and his brother Leo told local authorities there was a fire risk at the proposed plant and provisions must be made for a "suitable supply of water for firefighting purposes".
Council documents obtained by the Herald on Sunday show that Icepak chairman Jan van Eden dismissed those concerns.
"In relation to the possibility that the storage of dairy products might increase the risk of fire, this is unrealistic," Van Eden wrote in his submissions. "The coolstore buildings represent a significant capital asset, and all possible precautions are taken to ensure that the design and operation of the facilities minimises the potential for fire. There will be no extra coolant stored on the site."
Van Eden did not return calls, but Grattan said the plant's safety systems were modern and fully compliant with standards. He was reluctant to comment further while the investigation was ongoing.
There are five investigations into the cause of the explosion.
Roy Breeze said sufficient evidence had been gathered to allow investigators to consider "several options" but would not say what they were.
There was no indication of what had ignited the gas - the explosion could have been caused by the automatic air-conditioning system or switching on a torch or radio.
Meanwhile, the ERMA regulations could change, with the Institution of Professional Engineers of New Zealand planning a review of coolstore refrigeration. Its chief executive, Andrew Cleland, said they would await the outcome of the Fire Service investigation.
"We'll be looking at what are the lessons, if any, to be learned from what went wrong," Cleland said. "This is about lessons for the future, not about allocating blame, so we can minimise the chances of it happening again."
'A REAL MAN'S MAN'
A firefighter who suffered horrific injuries in the Tamahere explosion is facing a long recovery.
Merv Neil, 43, is in intensive care at Middlemore Hospital, South Auckland, after being engulfed by flames during the blast three weeks ago.
Dennis Wells, a fellow firefighter who was also injured in the coolstore blaze, was allowed to see Neil for a couple of minutes last Monday.
He said he was told his friend wouldn't "be right for at least another two months".
"I've been told he has operations on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays," said Wells. "Half his face is burnt and so are his feet and hands.
"Thankfully he wasn't burnt on his chest or stomach because they are using skin from those areas to do grafts."
Peter Lee, Neil's former boss at Hamilton Fire Station, said he hadn't been to see him because his family wanted to limit visitors. He said Neil was a "real man's man" who enjoys "V8 car races, anything to do with stock cars, all that sort of stuff".
Lee said a Fire Service colleague told him Neil opened his eyes and recognised his family for the first time last week.
Middlemore Hospital yesterday described Neil's condition as stable.
