HUSKY OFFICIAL SAYS LIMA OHIO REFINERY
FIRE UNDER CONTROL, AFTER AN EXPLOSION AND SUBSEQUENT FIRE ON SATURDAY, JANUARY
10, 2015. NEIGHBORS REPORTED EXPLOSION DEBRIS IN THEIR YARDS.
LIMA — A
loud explosion at the Husky Lima Refinery shook Lima and the surrounding area
early Saturday morning. Authorities said there’s no immediate danger to the
area, although the fire continues to burn.
Roads are
now open around the refinery.
An
isocracker at the refinery exploded around 6 a.m., said Russ Decker, director
of Allen County Emergency Management. While the isocracker continues to burn,
the flames and fumes neighbors notice are strictly oil burning off and
shouldn’t pose a threat to the environment or residents, Decker said.
At a
press briefing at 2:30 p.m., officials said the fire was contained and under
control by 1:45 p.m. Outside fire agencies planned to leave the facility,
leaving the task of controlling the to the refinery’s internal fire department.
They said there’s no current danger in the fire spreading to other structures.
Mel
Duvall, a spokesman for Husky, said the company was “managing the situation” at
8 a.m. He said the fire started on a processing unit. All personnel had been
accounted for, and there were no reported injuries, he said. There was one
unrelated injury of a man with a head injury.
Environmental
Protection Agency staff were on the scene, Duvall said. Those officials continue
to monitor air quality, but they’re not showing dangerous levels so far. Decker
said there was no immediate danger, with the biggest impact being the loud
whooshing noise heard nearby.
Husky,
EMA and EPA officials were all testing the air quality and didn’t find a
dangerous amount of harmful chemicals in the air.
Around
noon, the Shawnee Township Fire Department’s Platoon Chief John Norris reported
the initial fire was “well underway to being contained.”
Sgt. Andy
Green, of the Lima Police Department, said the fire was still burning, but
residents should be safe if they remain in their homes. Traffic was originally
restricted in all directions near the refinery, essentially from Fourth Street
to Vine Street until about 12:45 p.m. Only emergency responders were allowed to
approach, according to the Lima Police Department.
There
were no evacuation ordered. If anyone comes saying people should evacuate, they
should call the Lima Police Department at 419-221-5264 before leaving their
home.
The incident
also caused an electrical outage, affecting the facility’s industrial
neighbors. PotashCorp reported the PCS Nitrogen facility lost power, shutting
down several units. The facility is re-starting the units over the next few
days. The company warned residents they may hear elevated noise levels during
the shutdown and startup.
Neighbors
reported feeling an explosion shortly after 6 a.m. Saturday, followed by a
brighter flame than is typical for the refinery.
Decker
said windy conditions actually helped the situation, as it’s helping dissipate
the burning oil and fumes. He did acknowledge it also spread the smell of smoke
farther.
Some
neighbors reported seeing ash and debris in their yards. Decker said they were
hydrocarbons from the burning material. If neighbors have concerns or want the
debris cleaned up, they’re asked to call Husky’s local number, 419-226-2300.
The
burn-off of the flares lit up the early morning sky in Lima.
People as
far away as Bluffton, Delphos and Wapakoneta reported feeling the rattle from
the explosion, which woke many people in Lima on Saturday morning.
Decker
said the explosion was worse than any other he’s dealt with in his 17 years as
EMA director. That’s including the 2006 explosion of an oil tanker on Allentown
Road. He noted that incident involve 10,000 gallons of fuel and this was
“significantly more than that.”
The
isocracker that exploded was the first step in refining the crude oil, Decker
said. It’s the unit that brings to crude oil up to temperature to start
breaking down the oil into other products.
LIMA, OHIO —
UPDATE @ 4 p.m.
The fire
is now under control as some remaining product is being allowed to burn off,
according to Husky Spokesman Mel Duvall.
Crews
will continue to watch for flare ups.
“It is
still too early to say what the impact may be to production, but we do have
substantial product in inventory to continue to supply customers,” Duvall said
in a prepared statement.
UPDATE @ 11 a.m.
Husky
Energy Spokesman Mel Duvall said the fire continues to burn and crews from
within the refinery as well as emergency crews from Allen County continue to
battle flames.
The Ohio
Environmental Protection Agency is at the refinery and air monitoring devices
are in place, Duvall said.
There
have been no injuries, Duvall confirmed.
Exactly
what kind of harmful toxins if any may be in the billowing smoke was not
immediately known.
Duvall
said the large Lima Refinery is one of the oldest in the country that produces
various oil-based products including gasoline, disel and jet fuel.
UPDATE @ 10:40 a.m.
According
to a security guard at the refinery, workers there became aware of a fire in
one of the processing units round 6 a.m.
All personnel
are accounted for and there have been no reported injuries, the guard said.
Emergency
crews remain at the scene and smoke continues to billow into the air.
Corporate
Spokesman Mel Duvall said he was in the middle of an updated briefing and would
be able to provide more information before 11 a.m.
FIRST REPORT
Firefighters
are battling a blaze that is reported at the Husky Refinery in Lima.
Lima
Police have confirmed they are on the scene assisting crews at the scene in the
1100 block of South Metcalf Street, but say there is currently no danger to the
public in terms of chemicals burning.
Calls
into the newsroom have reported hearing explosions as far south as Indian Lake
in Logan County around 6 a.m. Saturday.
We will
continue to monitor this breaking story and update this page with the latest
when it’s available.
________________________________________________
January 10th, 2015
by Associated Press
in Breaking News
Read Time: < 1 min.
An explosion at an Ohio oil refinery blew out windows at homes in
Lima on Saturday and could be felt at least 10 miles away but resulted
in no injuries, police said.
All workers were accounted for after the blast at the Husky Lima Refinery, according to police.
The blast triggered a fire that burned into mid-afternoon and sent
black smoke billowing into the air above the refinery. Crews were
monitoring the air to make sure there was no danger to those nearby.
Those tests had not detected anything hazardous in the first hours
after the explosion, said Heidi Griesmer, a spokeswoman for the
Environmental Protection Agency.
The fire was mostly out 10 hours after the 6 a.m. explosion, said Husky Energy spokesman Mel Duvall.
It was too early to determine the extent of the damage or say how the
fire will affect production at the plant in the coming days, he said.
The company has substantial product in inventory to continue to supply customers, Duvall added.
No one had to be evacuated, but nearby streets were closed for about seven hours, said Lima police Sgt. Andy Green.
About 20 homeowners reported that the explosion broke their windows.
"It was felt throughout the city," Green said.
Plant officials were initially worried about secondary explosions before the fire was contained, he said.
The explosion happened in a processing unit where crude oil is heated
to begin the process of breaking it down into other products.
The refinery anchors an industrial area in Lima, which is about 80 miles northwest of Columbus.
//___________________________________________________//
LIMA, Ohio, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- Firefighters
continued battling blazes into the afternoon after explosions were
reported at a fuel refinery in Ohio early Saturday.
No injuries were reported
at Husky Refinery in Lima, Ohio, where an explosion reportedly shook
the surrounding area around 6 a.m., breaking windows in nearby homes and
causing fires at the large plant.
All personnel at the refinery have been accounted for, and
officials say the fire is contained, though it continues to burn as
Allen County firefighters attempt to douse the flames.
Smoke from the refinery, which processes gasoline, diesel and jet
fuel, has billowed high into the air. The Ohio Environmental Protection
Agency is at the scene monitoring for air toxins, according to Husky
Energy Spokesman Mel Duvall.
Lima Police Sgt. Andy Green told NBC24
there is no negative impact on the environment or danger to the public,
as the smoke is drifting high into the atmosphere and dissipating.
According to NBC24, the fire originated within one of the plant's
processing units from an exploded isocracker, a device that uses pressure to create naphtha and kerosene.
