US fuel tanks in Top End not built for severe cyclones
Giant fuel tanks being built at a cost of $270 million for the US military in the Top End are not designed to withstand a category three cyclone, have sprung leaks and lack a building permit.
But the Northern Territory government is working with the contractors, US company Crowley, to complete Project Caymus in Darwin Harbour to Australia's required safety, construction and environmental standards.
The 11 tanks are designed to hold 300 million litres of fuel to support Darwin-based US military operations in the Indo-Pacific.
They are built on NT government land and were due to be operational in September 2023 but have yet to hold fuel due to leaks and water intrusion around their bases.
An engineering report obtained by the ABC said the tanks should be classed at "importance level four", the highest classification for structures containing materials capable of causing hazardous conditions that extend beyond property boundaries.
Instead the tanks were initially designed at importance level two, the classification for a car garage, shed or suburban backyard workshop.
The report, completed in December 2023, said Crowley had specified the tanks be designed at a wind speed of 249.5km/h but they were designed for 193.5km/h.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Tracy decimated Darwin in 1974, with gusts of up to 217km/h before wind recording instruments failed.
Gusts during a category three cyclone can reach up to 224km/h, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
"Failure of the tanks in a cyclonic wind event could result in over 200 million litres of flammable and/or combustible liquid becoming uncontained," said the report cited by the ABC.
Such a failure would cause hazardous conditions beyond the property boundaries and to significant population areas and strategic facilities with "catastrophic consequences on people, property and the environment", the report said.
Crowley said all required approvals would be obtained from the NT government and other relevant authorities to comply with safety, construction and environmental standards.
The NT Department of Lands, Planning and the Environment confirmed to AAP the tanks lacked a building permit but it was decided not to pursue legal or punitive action.
The department said it was working with Crowley for it to provide independent verification of the "required safety, construction, and environmental standards and considerations".
"This independent evidence is necessary to determine that the tanks meet Australian standards that will ensure the project can be completed and operated," it said.
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