12 hurt in Texas refinery fire: Exxon Mobil
Crude oil is refined into fuel at the Alon Oil Refinery in Big Spring, Texas.
A fire at an Exxon Mobil refinery in Texas on Wednesday injured at least 12 employees, burning three and leaving at least one person in critical condition, company officials told the Associated Press.
The fire broke out at the Beaumont facility, which has a 344,500 barrel-per-day output. The unit was down for maintenance at the time and the blaze was extinguished quickly, spokeswoman Rachael Moore told Reuters.
Local fire department spokesman Brad Penisson told AP three people were critically burned and several broke limbs.
The wounded were taken to several hospitals for extended treatment, said AP.
The accident took place at 10:30 AM local time, according to the petrochemical market information provider ICIS.
“We sincerely regret this has happened and will conduct a complete investigation to determine the cause of the incident,” Moore told ICIS.