Investigators finally get to look inside BP plant By TOM FOWLER, Houston Chronicle
Witnesses have told the Houston Chronicle they continued to work without respirators last week and this week just yards from the barricades that surrounded the blast zone.
BP officials said the barricades were used to define the outer limits of the exclusion zone where there were concerns about the hazards such as benzene and asbestos.
'Since fumes do not respect barricades or yellow tape, the barricades and yellow tape are placed at the outer limit of potential risk, as that can most prudently be estimated,' BP said in a written statement. 'By definition, areas outside the barricaded area are deemed to be safe.'