
Fire out and shelter-in-place order is lifted after oil refinery explosion near Texas coast
BNN Bloomberg
A large explosion at an oil refinery near the Texas coast shot plumes of smoke into the air and forced nearby residents to shelter in place, officials said.
No one was injured in Monday’s explosion at the Valero refinery in Port Arthur, about 145 kilometres east of Houston, Mayor Charlotte M. Moses said. She had urged residents in parts of the west side of the city to stay put.
“There’s been an explosion, yes, but we’re OK; everybody’s OK,” she said. “They’re trying to put the fire out as quickly as possible.”
Residents at least several miles away said they felt their homes shake. Some schools in the area were closed Tuesday as a precaution.
The explosion comes amid a spike in gas prices driven by uncertainty over the global oil supply because of the Iran war.
The refinery has about 770 employees and can process about 435,000 barrels of oil per day, according to Valero’s website. The plant refines heavy sour crude oil into gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

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