Personal safety measures 'need improvement in oil industry'

The personal safety of many young people in the US is being threatened by inadequate regulations regarding oil tanks, it has been suggested.

Writing for the New York Times, Robbie Brown claimed structures of this kind can attract bored teenagers who may unintentionally trigger explosions.

"The accidents usually happen when a spark - from a cigarette, a firework or a gun - meets the oil and natural gas vapours released through a hatch in a tank's roof," he said.

One such incident resulted in the deaths of 18-year-old Wade White and his friend Devon Byrd in Mississippi last year.

According to Mr Brown, few state and local legislation exist regarding the personal safety of the general public near oil tankers, while no federal rulings are apparent either.

The American Petroleum Institute - a trade association with nearly 400 members - added that it has laws governing employee safety, but little to protect other civilians.