The Associated Press

HOUSTON—A federal agency has released a video to add to its report on the fatal March 2005 explosion at BP’s Texas City refinery.

“Anatomy of a Disaster,” released by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, examines the causes of the blast.

Sunday is the three-year anniversary of the explosion, which killed 15 people and injured more than 170 others. The safety board is the federal agency that investigates chemical explosions and spills. “We hope the lessons from this accident will be studied for years throughout the world’s petrochemical industry,” safety board chairman John Bresland, who was on the agency’s investigation team at Texas City, said in a statement.

The nearly hourlong video, available on the safety board’s video Web site, highlights the agency’s findings as detailed in a 341-page report, the Houston Chronicle reported Saturday. That written report was released on the second anniversary of the blast last year.

The accident occurred when a tower overfilled with flammable hydrocarbons that were routed to a blowdown stack that vented the excess liquid and vapor into the air. A vapor cloud ignited, causing the explosion that killed 15 workers in trailers less than 130 feet away. The video reiterates findings that BP budget cuts paved the way for the tragedy.

BP insists that it found no link between cost cuts and the disaster. However, the video highlights internal documents that note the effects of budget cuts.

The safety board investigation also found that BP had emphasized prevention of personal safety, such as preventing slips and falls, while marginalizing process safety, which is safe operation of equipment and handling of hazardous materials.

Ronnie Chappell, a spokesman for the British oil giant, said Friday that BP has tried to compensate families of those killed as well as injured survivors. BP has paid or committed more than $2.1 billion to settle thousands of civil claims. Hundreds more that involve mostly property damage are still pending.