An explosion and fire rocked a Louisiana plant on Thursday (KTRK)
Thursday, August 11, 2016 03:17PM
CONVENT, LA -- Firefighters at a refinery along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge are fighting a fire inside the plant.
Chief Ryan Louque (luke) of the neighboring St. James Fire Department tells The Associated Press the Motiva refinery is dealing with the fire itself, and no public fire departments are involved.
Officials with the St. James Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness told WAFB-TV there have been no reports of injuries.
Television video from the scene show flames in the center of the plant.
Motiva released the following statement to Eyewitness News:
At approximately 10:50 a.m. on Thursday, August 11, 2016, Motiva's Convent Refinery experienced a fire in the H-Oil unit. Motiva emergency response teams are containing the fire and the cause of the incident is under investigation. Other units in the refinery were not impacted and remain operational. Air monitoring confirms there is no impact to the community.
All employees are accounted for and there are no injuries. Employees not directly involved in the operation or response have been released for the day.
Motiva has notified all appropriate agencies and appreciates the support of the Louisiana State Police, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, St. James and Ascension Parish Sheriff's Offices, other local agencies, and our own emergency responders for their efforts in the incident response.
The refinery produces a full slate of conventional petroleum products including regular, premium and low-sulfur gasoline.
Motiva is owned equally by subsidiaries of Saudi Aramco and Shell Oil Company.