Oil Disasters Disasters
On August 6, 2012, a large fire erupted at the refinery at about 6:15 PM and reported to be contained at 10:40 PM. Flames were seen issuing from at least two of the refinery's towers. Contra Costa Health Services responded by notifying residents shelter in place. BART shut down local service. The shelter-in-place order was lifted at 11:15 PM. Initial reports estimated that 11,000 people sought treatment at area hospitals, and later reports placed the number above 15,000 people.
The Chevron Richmond Refinery is a 2,900-acre (1,200 ha) petroleum refinery in Richmond, California, on San Francisco Bay. It is owned and operated by Chevron Corporation and employs more than 1,200 workers, making it the city's largest employer. The refinery processes approximately 240,000 barrels (38,000 m3) of crude oil a day in the manufacture of petroleum products and other chemicals. The refinery's primary products are motor gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel and lubricants.
Six employees that were present at the scene of the fire suffered varying degrees of injury. Employee 1 received a minor burn to a small area on the left ear, Employee 2 suffered a small burn to the left wrist, Employee 3 suffered from abdominal discomfort. Employee 4's respiratory pathway was irritated, Employee 5 suffered blistering to the right leg from boot wear, and Employee 6 had a bruised finger. All of the injured employees were given on site medical treatment by the Chevron Fire Department and other on site medical staff.
A refinery spokeswoman stated that the fire erupted in the number 4 crude distillation unit, or CDU. Just before 6:30 p.m., an inspection crew discovered that there was a diesel leak in a line in the CDU—and that the leak was growing. The crew evacuated the area just before the diesel ignited, said Nigel Hearne, manager of the refinery. Three refinery workers were given first aid at the refinery. On April 15, 2013, the US Chemical Safety Board released their preliminary report citing Chevron for a chronic failure to replace aging equipment and called for an overhaul of regulatory oversight of the industry to prevent such accidents from happening again. More details
