CSB investigations look into all aspects of chemical accidents, including physical causes such as equipment failure as well as inadequacies in regulations, industry standards, and safety management systems. People, Donna Heise said, are becoming more aware if nothing else over the last seven years.. The machines are responsible for reducing ammonia and particulate emissions in a plant to comply with environmental regulations. Para obtener ms informacin sobre cmo utilizamos tus datos personales, consulta nuestra Poltica de privacidad y Poltica de cookies. The issues to be discussed include A decision not to use the ExxonMobil emergency siren to alert the community to the explosion and subsequent ash and dust fallout.. It was unclear what caused the fire. Cliff and Donna Heise, for example, serve as secretary and treasurer of the TRAA, respectively. Nosotros, Yahoo, somos parte de la familia de marcas de Yahoo. All rights reserved, Los Angeles County Holds Stable COVID-19 Hospitalization Rate, Tax Deadlines Extended to October for Most Californians Due to Storms, Check Your Pockets: These Coins Can Be Worth Up To $24,000, Glendale Neighborhood Frustrated After an Illegal Hostel Moves In, Road Rage Incident Kicks Off Pursuit, Carjacking, and Weapon Fired Out Window in Wild Chase, NASA Images Show Southern California Mountains Before and After Winter Storm. Robert Millea said he couldnt immediately confirm whether an explosion actually occurred, only that one was reported. Just before 9 that morning, pent-up gases at ExxonMobil's Torrance refinery south of Los Angeles had triggered an explosion so massive it registered as a magnitude-1.7 tremor. April 8, 2018 / 2:50 PM / KCAL News. Flares from the stack, part of a safety relief valve system, are part of normal operations that occasionally produce a rumbling sound, like distant thunder, caused by turbulent mixing of vapors. 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 respective responses were predictable: For years, both sides of this battle have zealously defended their positions. 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. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. The refineries are the only two in the state that use the substance. TORRANCE TODAY - FEBRUARY 16, 2023 - City of Torrance TorranceCitiCABLE 4.15K subscribers 113 views 1 day ago #184 1. California workplace regulators fined ExxonMobil more than $500 million for the violations related to the explosion. Several residents noticed what they described as a larger-than-usual flame from the plant's towering flare stack. Copyright 2023 KABC Television, LLC. Please enter valid email address to continue. An explosion at the ExxonMobil Refinery in Torrance today sent a plume of black smoke in the air and caused ash to cascade down on the area, but there were only two minor injuries. No further details were immediately available. Eight workers were decontaminated at the scene. Cuando utilizas nuestros sitios y aplicaciones, usamos. When you think about it, she said, it makes you not want to sleep at night.. ExxonMobil said in a statement early Wednesday afternoon that "no harmful emissions have been detected.". Here's your go-to source for today's LA news. Four people were injured in an explosion at an apartment building in Torrance Sunday afternoon, officials said. The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued a smoke advisory for any areas where residents can see or smell smoke. The fire was reported to the South Coast Air Quality Management District and California Office of Emergency Services, police said. Torrance school officials confirmed that staff and students sheltered in place due to possible air quality issues. Theyre going to pass it on to the consumer.. 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. Across California, CA | News | 15h. The improvements, though, also came after sustained pressure from the community and watchdog agencies. The governors office confirmed they received the request, but declined further comment. The work of the Safety Auditor was overseen by a Los Angeles Superior Court judge and approved prior to use of MHF at the refinery.. Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. For a breakdown of the fees and expenses associated with the verdicts and settlements listed on our site, please visit our Results page. They claim nothing has been done, she added, without any proof, other than their beliefs, which are incorrect and misleading.. The refineries arent going to eat that cost, William Burke, former chairman of the SCAQMDs governing board said in a previous interview. "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.". The CSB is an independent, non-regulatory federal agency charged with investigating serious chemical incidents. 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. Ryan Zehl is the lawyer responsible for this website. TORRANCE, Calif. -- An explosion rocked an Exxon Mobil refinery on Wednesday morning, triggering a huge smokestack flare, raining down ash and leaving four with minor injuries, company and. All communications are private and confidential. Weve won over $1 Billion for our clients, recovered some of the largest verdicts and settlement in history, and obtained record-setting victories against the biggest trucking, oil and gas, maritime and petrochemical companies in the world. The explosion on Feb. 18, 2015, was described by federal regulators as a serious near miss.. All safety systems at the refinery operated correctly and personnel were safe, police said. Still, the explosion led to further safety measures, some the refineries put in voluntarily and others they did so essentially at the behest of government agencies. The remainder of the FCC unit is comprised of a portion of the reaction process and a series of pollution control equipment that uses air and is known as the air side of the unit. No injuries were reported and there were no evacuations. 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. PBF, for its part, has repeatedly said concerns from local groups against MHF were unwarranted. In February, a large explosion occurred at ExxonMobils refinery in Torrance, California. Following the explosion, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health shut down the part of the refinery where the accident occurred. There have also been multiple safety enhancements to prevent leaks, they say. One person remained hospitalized with a knee injury. In 2004, the South Coast Air Quality Management District said much the same in an environmental analysis the agency did when Valero introduced MHF at its Wilmington refinery. Organizers estimated the crowd size at more than 400. The Torrance Fire Department responded to an explosion at the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery on Feb. 18, 2015. The CSBs report concludes that the unit was operating without proper procedures.. "Our main concern is for the safety of our employees and our neighbors.". Inside the refinery, the explosion blew off parts of an electrostatic precipitator and damaged other equipment at the plant. "I have second thoughts about being out here right now," said resident Anthony Scales. Steve Deuel said. No injuries were reported, and the fire did not impact anything offsite. Four people were injured in an explosion at an apartment building in Torrance Sunday afternoon, officials said. The information you review on this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice.The verdicts and settlements that we have listed are simply intended to be representative of the cases that Zehl & Associates has handled for past clients; they are not a guarantee or prediction of the outcome in your or any other lawsuit. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. The explosion also spurred a movement among residents to oppose MHF. 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. 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. 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. (KABC) -- The Torrance Police Department issued an alert for the city, notifying them that the Torrance ExxonMobil Refinery had an explosion and fire early Saturday morning. Gen. Xavier Becerras office investigate how the Torrance and Wilmington refineries are able to legally operate using hydrofluoric acid. If that was the case, we wouldnt have seen another explosion today, she added. 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County, Over $38M stolen from low-income SoCal families, Newport Beach home dangling after cliffside collapse, High-speed rail from L.A. to Vegas: What we know, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. Thousands of people could have been harmed if the MHF had dispersed beyond the Torrance refinery in 2015, the CSB report said. The 2015 explosion at the Torrance Refinery was bad, but it easily could have been catastrophic, Hahn said in a press release. 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.. 6 Min Read. 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. For decades, hydrofluoric acid was a standard chemical in oil refining, serving as a catalyst during a process known as alkylation. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. The Supervisor knew the proffers were toothless, Odendahl said. Explosion Rocks ExxonMobil Refinery in Torrance, California. As a result, when the valve was needed during an emergency, it did not work as intended, and hydrocarbons were able to reach an ignition source. There was a "large fire explosion" at the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery in Southern California on Wednesday morning, according to the Torrance Police Department. 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. Gavin Newsom to call for an investigation into the use of modified hydrofluoric acid at the facility, now operated by Torrance Refining Co., as well as by Valeros Wilmington refinery. The battle over a highly toxic chemical used in oil refining recently received a fresh jolt, seven years after the substance became a regional cause celebre in the wake of an explosion that rocked the Torrance Refinery. The AQMD estimated that replacing the MHF alkylation units with a safer sulfuric acid unit would cost the Torrance refinery about $900 million, and could temporarily impact gasoline supply and cost. 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. We are very proud of the many technical advances we have added to our Alkylation Unit over the years, the refinery says on its website, which is additional proof of our continuing commitment to safe, reliable operations.. 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. Environmentalists and concerned residents say MHF could prove catastrophic if the chemical were to escape, pointing to its corrosivity and studies that show its ability to travel beyond a refinerys footprint. 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. 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 blast caused serious property damage to the refinery and scattered catalyst dust up to a mile away from the facility into the nearby community. Were also the only law firm in the country thats currently representing over 65 of the workers who were injured in the Williams Geismar explosion, as well as 3 of the 4 workers who were tragically killed in the October 2015 Williams explosion in Gibson, Louisiana. On Saturday, the Torrance Refinery Action Alliance announced a campaign urging Gov. Three of them were taken to a nearby hospital, authorities said, after earlier indicating all four had been transported. Congresswoman Maxine Waters and I requested the U.S. Chemical Safety Board to investigate the explosion two years ago, Lieu said in the statement. For more information, contact Communications Manager Hillary Cohen, cell 202-446-8094 or email public@csb.gov. With the addition of these voluntary safety enhancements and other obligations completed and operating, we have fulfilled our obligation to further protect Refinery personnel and the community, Lafayette said. The explosion was so severe that it caused residents in the area to experience a shock similar to the effects of a 1.7 magnitude earthquake. And those who run the Torrance facility also say its refinery hasnt experienced an off-site leak of either HF or MHF since it opened in 1966. A smoke advisory was issued for areas near the ExxonMobil refinery due to Wednesday morning's explosion and fire. Bontas office said it hadnt received a letter from the county. Liz Odendahl, Hahns spokeswoman, said in an interview that the supervisor was furious at the AQMDs decision to accept the refineries proffers. 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. The explosion sent ash raining down on. 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. 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. U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu said in a statement Saturday that he plans to ask the U.S. Chemical Safety Board to include Saturdays incident as part of an ongoing investigation into the problems at the trouble-plagued refinery that began two years ago. 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. 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. Explosion reported in Torrance Fire department vehicles will patrol Los Angeles with vehicles and helicopters to identify the damage or emergency needs, it was reported. For a while, though, flames shot 40 feet into the air. The Board does not issue citations or fines but does make safety recommendations to plants, industry organizations, labor groups, and regulatory agencies such as OSHA and EPA. Kim Baldonado, Patrick Healy, Jason Kandel, and Tena Ezzeddine contributed to this report. 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. And so, the battle over MHFs future appears set to linger on with the Board of Supervisors call for a ban the latest volley. Before joining the newsroom in 2016, she was a general assignment reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com. There, too, the Torrance refinery has disagreed. Investigators are still looking into the cause of the explosion, wh. Posted Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 5:20 pm PT. The explosion sent ash raining down on vehicles parked near the sprawling 750-acre site and caused what one worker described as intense shaking. 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. Principal Office: Houston Texas. 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. By Nichola Groom TORRANCE, Calif. (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 four workers and shattering windows of surrounding buildings, authorities said. The Heises, for their part, are still working to educate residents in Torrance and Wilmington about their MHF concerns and are grateful the issue is still being monitored. With the capacity to refine more than 150,000 barrels of gasoline a day, the . Lieu commended the AQMD for its proposal to phase out the use of modified hydrofluoric acid at the plant, one of only two refineries in California to rely on MHF. Tammy Khan, of the Torrance Unified School District, said the shetler-in-place order was lifted early Wednesday afternoon. 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. North Torrance resident Daphne Wong, her husband, Eng, and their three children, ages 5 to 9, all walked to the refinery together despite the rain. The LA County Department of Public Health and former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra followed suit. Prior to joining the Press-Telegram, she served as the Daily Breeze's lead city hall reporter. Investigators are trying to determine what caused the explosion at a Torrance oil refinery that sent four workers to the hospital. TORRANCE (CBSLA) Firefighters say four people have been injured in a reported explosion at an apartment complex in Torrance. 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. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Hours after an explosion ripped through a Torrance refinery, residents for miles around continue to grapple with ash, a gas odor and concerns over poor air quality while inspectors confirmed that a filtration device was the source of the blast.
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