TORRANCE (CBSLA.com) A New Jersey-based oil refining company announced Wednesday it is purchasing the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance that was badly damaged in a February explosion, with. Many in the neighborhood reported being startled by a large blast. All safety systems at the refinery operated correctly and personnel were safe, police said. For more than seven years, members of small, local activist groups have been irresponsibly making claims against the Refinerys use of MHF, without any basis in fact, Lafayette wrote recently. Inside the refinery, the explosion blew off parts of an electrostatic precipitator and damaged other equipment at the plant. 'Large fire explosion' rocks ExxonMobil's Torrance Refinery in After protests and intensified public pressure from such activists as the Heises mounted in 2017, the AQMDs Proposed Rule 1410 became a key focus of the agencys Governing Board. Torrance officials said there was no chemical release and a citywide shelter-in-place order is not necessary, but those near the site should keep windows closed. April 8, 2018 / 2:50 PM / KCAL News. They claim nothing has been done, she added, without any proof, other than their beliefs, which are incorrect and misleading.. The motion also instructs county departments to review existing health and safety measures related to MHF including emergency precautions in case of an accidental leak. No further details were immediately available. They have not yet completed their final investigation, and I will be asking the Chemical Safety Board to include todays fire and explosion as part of their investigation.. Overturned gas tanker explodes, killing 1 person, Texas mom in custody after 5 of her kids were stabbed, leaving 3 dead, Ja Morant says he'll get help after video shows apparent gun. The explosion also launched an 80,000-pound piece of equipment within feet of a structure that housed a highly volatile and toxic substance, modified hydrofluoric acid. Eight workers were decontaminated at the scene. The state could potentially lose thousands of jobs, and it could result in higher gasoline prices at the pump for California residents, businesses, and government, Californians for a Sustainable Economy an association representing hundreds of local businesses wrote in opposition to the ban. I cant believe they dont have the guts to stand up and say, This is wrong and MHF needs to be out of our community, she said. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. Its been a few years now, and there has been very little progress.. They have lived in a neighborhood directly adjacent to the Torrance refinery for 48 years. Explosion Rocks ExxonMobil Refinery in Torrance, California - NBC News Several residents noticed what they described as a larger-than-usual flame from the plant's towering flare stack. Torrance firefighters . 2022 Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers. 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. And it directs L.A. County to support any new legislation that would help phase out MHF. California Occupational Safety and Health officials were at the site investigating. TORRANCE (CBSLA) Firefighters say four people have been injured in a reported explosion at an apartment complex in Torrance. "Emergency procedures have been activated to address the incident, and employees are working with the appropriate agencies," a statement by the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery said. Hahn who left the agencys board in December 2019 was one of two votes opposed to accepting the proffers. Refinery officials, though, say MHF was specifically designed to be safer than its non-modified original hydrofluoric acid and has been reviewed by experts and deemed the best catalyst for the refining process. Since the February 2015 explosion, the refinery has experienced multiple incidents. Deuel told The Associated Press the flare system was triggered to burn off fuel that could add to the fire. Tammy Khan, of the Torrance Unified School District, said the shetler-in-place order was lifted early Wednesday afternoon. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. The motion the LA County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed in mid-February asks Gov. All communications are private and confidential. Other than the affected crude unit, the refinery continues to operate, Brien said. Advocates renew call for MHF ban on 8th anniversary of Torrance Those safety advances, however, have come since the 2015 explosion and a harsh assessment by federal investigators. The CSB investigation also discovered that a large piece of debris from the explosion narrowly missed hitting a tank containing tens of thousands of pounds of modified hydrofluoric acid, or MHF. Congresswoman Maxine Waters and I requested the U.S. Chemical Safety Board to investigate the explosion two years ago, Lieu said in the statement. But the consequences, according to federal investigators, could have been far worse: The explosion, investigators wrote in a report two years later, nearly released tons of modified hydrofluoric acid, potentially putting thousands in the South Bay at risk. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Kristy Hutchings covers all things Long Beach including local government, politics, and the environment. There, too, the Torrance refinery has disagreed. Cliff and Donna Heise, for example, serve as secretary and treasurer of the TRAA, respectively. The cause of the fire, which Millea said burned an unspecified amount of crude oil, is under scrutiny by investigators from Cal-OSHA, the states worker safety agency, while a county hazardous materials team also was on the scene. Local battle over toxic chemical at Torrance, Wilmington refineries The additive does this by ensuring the chemical used as a liquid during refining doesnt turn into a gas. "I kind of figured we had an earthquake, then I realized, living by the factory for all those years, they had a problem with the factory.". Environmentalists and activists, though, argue that the additives levels in MHF have significantly decreased since the modified versions creation. Thick smoke rose from a mangled, multiple-story portion of the Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery, located south of the 405 Freeway, after the 8:50 a.m. blast. TORRANCE, Calif.- 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 four workers and shattering windows of surrounding buildings, authorities said.Investigators were trying to determine the cause of the blast, which occurred shortly before 9 a.m. PST (12 p.m. Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers is a Houston Personal Injury Law Firm that represents accident victims across Texas, Louisiana and the United States. Investigators are trying to determine what caused the explosion at a Torrance oil refinery that sent four workers to the hospital. Several contractors were injured in the Feb. 18, 2015, blast that shut down the refinery for more than a year, leading to soaring gas prices in Southern California. The incident caused the refinery to be run at limited capacity for over a year, raising gas prices in California and costing drivers in the state an estimated $2.4 billion. When you think about it, she said, it makes you not want to sleep at night.. Theyre going to pass it on to the consumer.. The new campaign comes several months after air quality regulators killed a years-long push for stronger regulation of hydrofluoric acid at the two refineries. For a while, though, flames shot 40 feet into the air. Minor injuries were reported after the explosion ripped apart structures at the oil refinery and shook homes for miles around the blast site in southern Los Angeles County. "I just appreciate that I'm here. Two others sustained minor injuries. Three were treated and released. The couple was taking a stroll outside of North High Schools football field on the day of the 2015 explosion. Both the PBF and Valero refineries are situated in densely populated areas of the South Bay: About 245,000 people live within three miles of the Torrance refinery and another 153,000 live within that same distance of Valeros refinery, AQMD said. Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. April 8, 2018 / 2:50 PM No injuries were reported and there were no evacuations. in journalism from the University of Southern California. 1750 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Suite 910 | Washington, DC 20006. On Saturday, the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance announced a campaign urging Gov. TORRANCE TODAY is a 15-minute live news broadcast airing Monday. For a breakdown of the fees and expenses associated with the verdicts and settlements listed on our site, please visit our Results page. People gathered in protest at the refinery later in the afternoon on the 2-year anniversary of an explosion at the plant that left two people injured. Explosion at Exxon Mobil refinery in Torrance, California, injures four The incident was reported around 1:15 p.m. on the 23500 block of Anza Avenue, just north of the Pacific Coast Highway, Assistant Torrance Fire Chief Robert Millea said. My first reaction was, this doesn't sound good, this doesn't look good. Investigators are still looking into the cause of the explosion, wh. I urge SCAQMD to act with urgency, said the South Bay Democrat. Four apartments have been damaged, two of which sustained "significant damage.". Really? read one of the signs carried by chanting marchers who endured a steady downpour to protest the use of toxic hydrofluoric acid at the refinery. In the late 1980s, ExxonMobil and Phillips 66 jointly created modified hydrofluoric acid, which boasts a chemical additive that, when used in high enough concentrations, can prevent the poisonous chemical from dispersing. The investigation of the Torrance explosion by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board revealed that a piece of equipment nearly crashed into a tank holding tens of thousands of pounds of modified hydrofluoric acid a highly toxic chemical used to make high-octane gasoline. Manhattan Beach, CA crime, fire and public safety news and events, police & fire department updates Three dozen firefighters knocked down the blaze within a half-hour. California oil refinery blast sends flames shooting into sky It provides 362 jobs around $30 million in wages in Torrance, according to its website. Congressman Ted Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) issued the following statement on Saturday's fire: Federal investigators in January said a failure to follow safety guidelines was partly to blame for the blast and that the aftermath could have been "catastrophic" had the equipment hit the unit housing MHF. More than a day after the accident, no representative from ExxonMobil had directly contacted the Torrance fire chief and city officials still did not know what was in the substances that were released into the surrounding areas. Officials were investigating the cause of the over-pressurization. Hutchings holds a B.A. Those calls for a ban remain. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. That, the report said, would prevent the chemical from dispersing as widely as it would as an aerosol. TORRANCE (CBSLA) Firefighters say four people have been injured in a reported explosion at an apartment complex in Torrance. One person remained hospitalized with a knee injury. Activists carried signs reading Congratulations PBF, zero days explosion free and All lives matter while chanting Hey, hey, ho, ho, MHF has got to go. Some said the turnout demonstrates the series of refinery disruptions has reached a crisis point. TORRANCE An explosion and fire in a gasoline processing unit rocked the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance today, injuring three workers and sending flames and ash into the sky. The explosion filled surrounding neighborhoods with ash, fiberglass, and glass wool. The 2015 explosion at the Torrance Refinery was bad, but it easily could have been catastrophic, Hahn said in a press release. The SCAQMD didnt comment on Hahns request for the organization to reexamine the viability of alternative technologies to MHF, some of which may be more commercially available than they were at the time of the vote. The cause of the explosion was not known. While the unit where the blast occurred was ordered shut down, the rest of the refinery is still in operation. The explosion on Feb. 18, 2015, was described by federal regulators as a serious near miss.. By then, the husband said, theyd been living in the city long enough to know exactly what the sound was. Every one of our lawyers is a Houston personal injury attorney whos undefeated in the courtroom and has recovered some of the largest verdicts and settlements in history. That failure ultimately allowed hydrocarbons to flow into the air side of the FCC, where they ignited in a piece of equipment called the electrostatic precipitator, or ESP, causing an explosion of the ESP. The Torrance refinery has completed all safety enhancements and Valero has begun installation of some elements of safety measures structures and additional implementation is ongoing, said SCAQMD spokesperson Nahal Mogharabi in an email. Additional locations: Dallas, TX | Midland, TX | Odessa, TX | Louisiana, Plant Explosion Lawyer Refinery & Pipeline, Railroad Crossing Accidents and Train Accidents, Longshore & Harbor Workers Compensation Act. Final CSB Report of Explosion at ExxonMobil Refinery in Torrance, CA That update was completed last year as well. No injuries were reported, and the fire did not impact anything offsite. With the capacity to refine more than 150,000 barrels of gasoline a day, the . The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a smoke advisory for any areas where residents can see or smell smoke. Unfortunately, ExxonMobil, the owner-operator of the refinery at the time of the accident, did not respond to the CSBs requests for information detailing safeguards to prevent or mitigate a release of MHF, and therefore the agency was unable to fully explore this topic in its final report. I wish the Torrance City Council had the courage to say that.. For decades, hydrofluoric acid was a standard chemical in oil refining, serving as a catalyst during a process known as alkylation. PBF also reached a separate agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to upgrade an additional water monitor in 2020, according to Lafayette. The fire, possibly triggered by an explosion that has not yet been confirmed, was reported at 6 a.m. Saturday in the plant's crude oil unit, said Torrance Assistant Fire Chief Steve Treskes. Officials were not aware of their exact conditions, but witnesses said some were seriously hurt. In the past 5 years alone, our Plant Explosion Lawyers have Won over $1 Billion for workers who were seriously injured and burned in refinery and industrial accidents, represented workers in connection with every major plant and refinery explosion in recent history, and recovered record-setting verdicts and settlements against the largest oil and gas companies in the world, including ExxonMobil, Williams, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips. Feb . A powerful blast at an ExxonMobil oil refinery rocked Torrance, California, on Wednesday. The refinery, where about 155,000 barrels of crude oil are processed each day, has been part of the South Bay landscape since the 1920s. Im absolutely appalled, said Torrance teacher Julie Stoll, referring to the lack of support from Torrance officials. The building has been undergoing renovations for some time, and the victims are believed to be remodelers working in one of the involved units, neighbors said. Chairperson Sutherland said, There are valuable lessons to be learned and applied at this refinery, and to all refineries in the U.S. Keeping our refineries operating safely is critical to the well-being of the employees and surrounding communities, as well as to the economy.. Fill Out the Form Below for a Free Case Review with our Undefeated Personal Injury Lawyers. Refinery officials those from ExxonMobil, which owned the Torrance Refining Company during the explosion, and current owner PBF Energy have repeatedly pushed back on that conclusion, saying MHF doesnt pose a widespread threat. Explosion Rips Through Torrance Refinery, Shakes South Bay It was unclear what caused the fire. Finally, the slide valve - a safety-critical safeguard within the system - was degraded significantly. Refineries are not supposed to have explosions. Times staff writer Tony Barboza contributed to this report. All the while, officials at those facilities have defended the chemicals use as safe. Redondo Beach Local News. For a while, though, flames shot 40 feet into the air. There was no sign of an announced safety rally at the refinery PBF had planned to hold for workers as a counterpoint to the demonstration so they could reflect upon the (2015) incident.. 4 Injured In Reported Explosion At Torrance Apartment Complex The Torrance Fire Department responded to an explosion at the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery on Feb. 18, 2015. proporcionarte nuestros sitios y aplicaciones; autenticar usuarios, aplicar medidas de seguridad y evitar el spam y los abusos, y. medir el uso que haces de nuestros sitios y aplicaciones. Activists held an event Saturday to mark the fifth anniversary of the explosion at the Exxon Mobil refinery in Torrance that injured four workers. The CSBs report concludes that the unit was operating without proper procedures.. A Redondo Beach resident told NBC4 windows rattled at his house, about five miles from the refinery. But in the years since the 2015 explosion, residents have continued decrying MHF. The AQMDs own reports warned that the ability of MHF to prevent formation of a vapor/aerosol cloud is highly uncertain and that a release of MHF will result in exposure to HF with the same health effects.. 4 Injured in Possible Gas Explosion at Torrance Apartment - KTLA So far though, it doesn't appear as if any serious damage or injuries have occurred, barring reported explosions in Torrance. Cal/OSHA has shut down the fluid catalytic cracker and will only allow operations to resume once it can be exhibited that the unit can operate safely. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. There was a "large fire explosion" at the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery in Southern California on Wednesday morning, according to the Torrance Police Department. "I have second thoughts about being out here right now," said resident Anthony Scales. Torrance school officials confirmed that staff and students sheltered in place due to possible air quality issues. The CSB also found that in multiple instances leading up to the incident, the refinery directly violated ExxonMobils corporate safety standards. The latest salvo in the battle over MHF came last month, when the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors called for a ban on the highly toxic chemical. Having affordable fuel that is readily available is a vital part of the California economy.. There were also questions asking why the emergency refinery sirens did not sound following the accident. Member-Designated Transportation Projects, Fire erupts at Torrance refinery just hours before protest rally, announced safety rally at the refinery PBF had planned to hold for workers as a counterpoint to the demonstration, Manhattan Beach Office (By Appointment Only). The 2015 explosion, according to the CSB, caused the refinery to run at limited capacity for more than a year and raised gas prices in California costing drivers in the state an estimated $2.4. The ExxonMobil near-disaster you probably haven't heard of The Torrance refinery, however, also contributes significantly to the citys economy. A group of activists on Saturday marked the fifth anniversary of an explosion at the Exxon Mobil refinery in Torrance that injured four workers and prompted continuing concerns about the potential for an even more catastrophic incident and the release of toxic chemicals and fumes into local communities. The explosion, which happened . The blast caused serious property damage to the refinery and scattered catalyst dust up to a mile away from the facility into the nearby community. The decision by the board came one week after the two refineries sent letters offering to install improved safety systems in the coming years if regulators ended their pursuit of new rules for the chemical. Prior to joining the Press-Telegram, she served as the Daily Breeze's lead city hall reporter. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bontas offices to take all possible actions to require refineries in California to convert from MHF to safer alternatives.. Posted Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 5:20 pm PT. First thing I thought was to call my wife, my kids, and let them know I'm safe.". All communications are private and confidential. The fire, possibly triggered by an explosion that has not yet been confirmed, was reported at 6 a.m. Saturday in the plants crude oil unit, said Torrance Assistant Fire Chief Steve Treskes. But at least for now, environmentalists and the refineries remain entrenched in their positions. Had the tanks ruptured, the report said, it would have caused a massive release of MHF, which can be deadly to anyone who comes in contact with it. But HF is highly corrosive, posing a threat to nearby communities if it were dispersed as a gas during a fire, explosion or the like. The blast caused serious property damage to the refinery and scattered catalyst dust up to a mile away from the facility into the nearby community. The modified HF catalyst reduces acid vapor pressure sufficiently to suppress the usual flash atomization process of hydrofluoric acid, that environmental impact report said, causing most of the acid to fall to the ground as an easily controlled liquid and reduces the potential for off-site consequences of an accidental HF release.. Valero, owner of the Wilmington refinery, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

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