Potential hazards resulting from intentional or accidental spilling of large quantities of LNG include thermal radiation from vapor cloud fires (also referred to as flash fires) and pool fires. There is general agreement among LNG experts regarding the following aspects of potential LNG fire and explosion hazards:
1) Vapors from large, un-ignited spills of LNG cannot travel far into developed areas without finding an ignition source, igniting, and burning back to the source.
2) Once delayed ignition of the vapor cloud occurs, and provided that the cloud is unconfined and rich in methane, the LNG vapors will burn in the form of a vapor cloud fire.
3) A vapor cloud traversing over commercial and/or residential terrain will almost certainly encounter an ignition source early in its downwind drift and the resulting vapor cloud fire will burn back to the source.
4) The vapor cloud fire will burn back to the source and cause a pool fire at the source if the release is a continuous release and the release duration is longer than the time it takes the cloud to find an ignition source.
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