Powerful explosion and fire rock California refinery

A refinery in El Segundo, California, experienced an explosion and fire on Thursday evening, causing massive flames visible for many kilometers, UNN reports, citing the Los Angeles Times.

Details

El Segundo authorities reported a fire at the Chevron refinery, but there was no threat to the public or evacuation orders. In some areas of northern Manhattan Beach, a shelter-in-place order was in effect until 2:00 AM local time.

Video footage taken around 9:30 PM local time during the explosion showed a huge fireball erupting with a loud, prolonged rumble. However, within the next hour, the flames significantly subsided, and the sky largely cleared, while bright, intense flames continued to flare up near the southern part of the Chevron plant.

Shortly before 10:30 PM local time, Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell told KCAL that the fire was largely contained. She noted that there were no reports of injuries and "no cause for concern in the surrounding areas." She stated that authorities would monitor air quality and recommended that residents in nearby areas remain indoors if possible.

El Segundo Mayor Chris Pimentel told KCAL that the fire had not spread beyond the refinery's perimeter, and all employees were accounted for. The cause of the fire remains unclear, he added.

Plumes of smoke were visible in the El Segundo and South Bay areas, with firefighters working on site and extinguishing the fire with water. The refinery has its own fire department, and other state services were involved in fighting the fire.

In northern Redondo Beach, smoke billowed against an orange sky.

"It was a 90-meter high flame," said 53-year-old Keith Moore, who lives south of the refinery in Manhattan Beach, noting that he has lived next to the plant for more than two decades and has never seen anything like this inferno. "I didn't know if a plane had crashed, or if there was an earthquake, or both."

Traffic in the area was blocked.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom were briefed on the incident Thursday evening. In a statement posted on X, Bass said that Los Angeles International Airport was not affected. According to a statement posted on X, the Governor's administration is coordinating with local agencies and state services to protect the local population and ensure public safety.

Addition

Refinery fires are reportedly an inherent part of life in the South Bay area, home to several large oil production facilities.

In 2022, it took firefighters two hours to extinguish a fire at a facility in El Segundo. In 2020, a fire at the Marathon Petroleum refinery in Carson sent flames at least 30 meters high and caused concern. However, the fire was eventually contained and did not cause significant damage to the plant's operations.