FEBRUARY 18, 2015
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA. (AP)
Of course the striking refinery workers have nothing to do with it.
An explosion erupted at an Exxon Mobil refinery on
Wednesday, triggering a huge smokestack flare, raining down ash and leaving two
with minor injuries.
The blast happened in a processing facility and the material
involved was most likely gasoline, Fire Department spokesman Steve Deuel told
KCBS-TV.
TV news helicopters showed a structure several stories tall
with damage and spewing smoke. Crews were pouring water onto the structure more
than two hours after the blast.
The facility's flare system was triggered to burn off fuel
that could add to the fire, Deuel said.
Residents within a mile or two reported feeling a sharp jolt
that they initially thought was an earthquake.
Nearby roads were closed after the blast hit, shortly before
9 a.m., Torrance police Sgt. Paul Kranke said.
Neither of the people injured was hospitalized, he said. The
refinery sent workers home for the day.
Exxon Mobil spokesman Todd Spitler said the cause of the
explosion was under investigation and company officials were working with local
agencies.
Students at 13 nearby schools were being kept indoors, said
Tammy Khan of the Torrance Unified School District.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a
smoke advisory for areas surrounding the refinery.
The facility about 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles
covers 750 acres, employs over a thousand people, and processes an average of
155,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to the company.
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(Reuters) - An explosion and fire ripped through a gasoline processing unit at an Exxon Mobil refinery in Torrance, California, near Los Angeles on Wednesday, slightly injuring three workers and shattering windows of surrounding buildings, authorities said.
The cause of the blast, shortly before 9 a.m. PST (11 a.m. ET), was under investigation, but there was no evidence of foul play, said Torrance Fire Captain Steve Deuel.
The injured workers suffered minor injuries and were treated at the scene by paramedics, Deuel said.
"The most important thing is to shelter in place, stay indoors, no outdoor activity, turn the air conditioners off, keep the windows closed," Furey told the station.
Shares of Exxon Mobil's extended morning losses after the news before stabilizing. The shares were down 2 percent at $91 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
Deuel said a small ground fire following the explosion was quickly extinguished and that firefighters were working with refinery crews to contain a gasoline leak that resulted from the blast.
There was no evacuation of surrounding areas, but nearby schools were keeping students and staff indoors immediately after the blast as a precaution, Deuel said.
He said structural damage appeared to be confined to the processing unit that blew up, but the full extent of damage had yet to be ascertained.
"We're in the process of stabilizing the situation and there are no other issues happening," he told Reuters. Excess gasoline was being flared, or burned off, by the refinery, he added.
The explosion occurred near a fluid catalytic cracking unit at the refinery, according to David Campbell, the treasurer and secretary of the local chapter of the United Steelworkers, which represent operators at the plant.
Helicopter news footage on local television station KNBC showed a scene of twisted metal wreckage as firefighters poured streams of water on the refinery. A few vans were covered in ash and debris with their doors open.
Students at 14 schools near the refinery were ordered to shelter in place because of concerns over air quality, meaning students would not be allowed outside, Torrance Unified School District spokeswoman Tammy Khan told Reuters.
“We are taking every measure to make sure our students are safe,” Khan told a local media outlet.
The company said it was looking into the cause of the explosion, according to Gesuina Paras, a public and government affairs adviser at Exxon Mobil.
Torrance had a population of more than 147,000 in 2013, according to a U.S. Census Bureau estimate.
The incident came after the United Steelworkers walked out of 11 facilities, including nine refineries, after negotiations on a national contract stalled on Feb. 1. One of the central issues, according to the USW, is employee safety.
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FOUR INJURED IN EXXON
REFINERY EXPLOSION IN CALIFORNIA
Four workers suffered minor injuries after a large explosion
Wednesday morning at the Exxon Mobil refinery in Torrance, according to an
Exxon spokesman.
Residents in the area were asked by police to remain indoors
after the explosion. That shelter-in-place order has now been lifted, but a
smoke advisory has been issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management
District.
About 47 firefighters responded to the third-alarm explosion
about 8:50 a.m.. The blast was followed by a ground fire that was quickly
extinguished, a Torrance fire captain said.
Firefighters worked with Exxon Mobil workers to stabilize
the blaze.
Exxon Mobil spokesman Todd Spitler said when the incident
occurred refinery workers activated "emergency procedures."
"Our main concern is for the safety of our employees
and our neighbors," he said.
Just after 11 a.m., Torrance police and Exxon Mobil
officials said all employees were accounted for. Spliter said four contractors
were taken to Long Beach Medical Center for minor injuries.
“Refinery personnel,
working with the Torrance Fire Department, are conducting air monitoring at the
refinery fence line and in the local community,” he said. “These instruments
are designed to detect air emissions that may be harmful."
No harmful emissions were detected, Spitler said. But AQMD,
which is at the refinery assessing air quality, issued the smoke advisory.
A hazardous materials team was also at the scene.
Residents took to Twitter on Wednesday morning reporting
that there had been an explosion and that ash was falling from the sky.
Gilbert Griego, 70, was watching television at home with his
daughter-in-law and grandson when the house shook. He has lived near the
refinery for about 65 years.
"My daughter in-law thought it was an earthquake,"
he said. "I didn't think it was because I didn't feel the ground
move."
Looking at the flames from his home, which sits near the
intersection of Crenshaw and Del Amo boulevards, he said this incident wasn't
too bad.
He recalled an 1979 oil tank fire at the Mobil Oil facility
that sits behind his house. He said that disaster forced the evacuation of
their neighborhood.
Torrance Fire Capt. Steve Deuel said early Wednesday the
incident could be a result of a petroleum product leak.
A white foam insulation product was sent into the sky and
landed in nearby streets, he said. He urges residents to call a 24-hour hot
line, at (310) 505-3158, if they have any concerns about the product.
Fourteen schools in the area, including seven elementary
schools, were sheltering in place, said Tammy Khan, a district spokeswoman.
Outdoor activities were limited for students in schools close to the refinery
on the north and west sides of the district.
Torrance Mayor Patrick Furey told KNBC-TV that the material
in the air was not caustic: "There's not much wind today, so it's not
dissipating that quickly," he said.
The refinery is at 3700 W. 190th St. in Torrance. It covers
750 acres and employees about 650 employees and 550 contractors. The
refinery processes an average of 155,000 barrels of crude oil per day and
produces 1.8 billion gallons of gasoline a year.
State Assemblyman David Hadley (R-66th district), who
represents the South Bay, said on Facebook his office had contacted Exxon Mobil
and emergency services "to learn what we can and to be of service as
needed in the South Bay.”
“Please keep the employees and neighbors of the facility in
your thoughts and prayers,” Hadley said.