California Oil Refinery Goes Up In Flames

[Roland99]

http://www.kirotv.com/news/10751547/detail.html

RICHMOND, Calif. -- A fire broke out at a Chevron oil refinery Monday morning in Richmond, sending flames 50 feet into the air and prompting an order for residents to stay indoors, authorities said.

The refinery is on the East side of San Francisco Bay. The fire began at about 5:24 a.m., according to Contra Costa County Hazardous Materials specialist Maria Duazo.

"We are asking residents to stay inside, close their doors and windows and shut off ventilation," Duazo said.

Toll workers at the nearby Richmond San Rafael Bridge were told to leave their posts because of the smoke and fumes in the air. Drivers crossing the bridge will not have to pay a toll, unless they are using FasTrak cards.

PERFECT timing.

Right when gas here dropped under $2/gal over the weekend. It NEVER stays below $2/gal for more than 2-3 days.

[soothsayer]

1. I was thinking the same thing!

[lonestarnot]

2. Keep those prices hot.

[Coventina]

4. And the planet even hotter! n/t

[liberal N proud]

3. The ends justify the means.

If it requires destroying the system to pump up the price they will do it.

[dubykc]

5. Coincidence?

I think not!

[Gormy Cuss]

6. The good news: under control at this time and only one injury

One worker (out of 1200 on site) was transported to the hospital with what are believed to be minor burns.
Second link:
http://www.ktvu.com/news/10751187/detail.html

CA regs require a different formula from most states and these NorCal refineries pretty much make only our formula, although I wouldn't put it past the oil companies to use it as an excuse elsewhere.
Our local prices are still in the area of $2.50+ per gallon.

[EFerrari]

29. Our poor East Bay.

:(

[Gormy Cuss]

36. I sometimes think they should rename my county Shelter-In-Place

Between the Richmond area and Martinez there's a shelter-in-place notice at least once a year for the refineries or other industrial accidents.

[confludemocrat]

7. One of the richest oil co's in the world has this happen pretty often

We lived in Richmond CA in the late 80s when this same thing occurred, with corrosive ashes falling on every square inch of the city. How is it that this happens? No wonder they elected a Green party mayor lately.

[Mrs. Overall]

12. Yes, I lived in San Rafael through the 80's into the early 90's and

I remember quite a few fires at the refinery. We would watch the huge flames from across the water as the wind carried the ash everywhere.

[teryang]

8. Pouring water on the fire?

This has to be wrong. Why would firefighters use water on a liquid flamables fire?

[kestrel91316]

15. I think it's correct. You don't use water on a GREASE fire.

As in fats or oils in the kitchen. And maybe this is gasoline or the lighter fractions?

We probably need somebody with fire experience to clarify this.

[BlueCollar]

44. I trained to fight fires in the Navy

It is possible to use water to extinguish a fuel fire. It relies on the principal that a fire requires three factors to burn...fuel, oxygen and heat...water is used to remove the heat from the formula by cooling the air and area surrounding the fire until it can no longer maintain itself.

Having said that, it is an extinguishing technique that requires the proper equipment used by experienced and trained individuals...generally, CO2 extinguishers are the safest bet for household fires...

[TX-RAT]

24. It's more to cool down hot metals.

[hedgehog]

28. I haven't seen the video, but here are several possibilities:

1. Using water to cool adjacent tanks.

2. Actaully spaying foam.

3. Spaying the area to wash fumes from the air.

[One_Life_To_Give]

32. Despite what you have heard

Yes, you should never pour water onto a flammable liquid fire. But that prohibition does not hold for firefighters. There are risks but it does work quite well. Especially when you concider that unluke your 5 Gal/minute garden hose a standard 1-3/4in handline can easily dispense 175 Gal/minute or more.

So while it would be easy to accidently push the fire back into your face by using water on it. For a professional the rules are somewhat different. Also without having seen any images of what is happening, water serves several functions. It can be used to cool the thermal column, cool adjacent materials that might ignite, cool hot metal that may be reigniting the flammable liquid or to act as a radiant heat shield and/or provide airflow.

[Nihil]

38. Thanks OLTG (+previous four posters)

... for providing useful (possibly life-saving) information to people.
Sorry that your input seems to have been swamped in a flood of "$x/gallon" posts
but that appears to be the way of the world now: ignore the valuable stuff and
concentrate on trivia instead.
:shrug:

[harpboy_ak]

40. Plus they use special fog nozzles

For oil fires, they use special fog nozzles, partly to cool things down, partly to absorb any volatile vapors and prevent re-ignition. Some trucks have retardant tanks, which use a special nozzle to create a fire retardant foam that smothers the fire.

All at much higher pressure than you get from your faucet or gardening hose....

[BushOut06]

9. Gas was under $2/gal in California?

Here in Florida, which usually has lower prices than the national average, it's been hovering around $2.30 for awhile now.

[CountAllVotes]

16. it has never dropped below where it is now

right now - cheapest price to be found where I live is $2.69 a gallon (except for Costco). The highest it got was $3.59.

:dem:

[Jack Rabbit]

10. The price of gasoline will go up

Everytime there's a disaster like this, the pump price goes up -- way up.

I've always been skeptical that one refinery shut down over a period of time would cause the price of gasoline to rise as much as it does.

[Vidar]

11. Have to jack up prices somehow.

[kestrel91316]

13. Who the heck has gas UNDER $2?????

We are still at $2.47, and that's the cheapest for miles and miles.

[Maeve]

14. Central Ohio--$1.99 today at BP eom

[donsu]

17. the other day premium was 2.66 in Key West

nt

[BushOut06]

18. At least you live in Key West

Been there a couple times, great place. Seems like you wouldn't need a car very much down there.

[donsu]

23. true - island 5 1/2 mi long at longest 1 1/2 mi. wide at widest

nt

[llmart]

21. Under $2.00 in Detroit suburbs.............

since last week.

[Thor_MN]

35. Filled up for $1.929 a gallon on Saturday in MN.

That was with a $0.03/gal coupon. Most of Minnesota's gas comes from high sulphur crude piped in from Canadia. They did something intelligent and built a refinery designed from the ground floor to take out the sulphur and process it into sulphuric acid and other sulphur compounds which are then sold. So they take less desireable crude (at lower prices) and sell the "waste products." Thus Minnesota's fuel has been more stable than other upper midwest states.

[superconnected]

19. $2.49 yesterday in WA state.

[gratuitous]

20. Crude prices have "dipped" to the low $50s

And while it doesn't sound like this was a major fire and was quickly extinguished, it will probably be cited as the reason for barrel prices to go back above the $60 mark. Which will take us to the spring changeover time, which catches the oil companies off guard every stinkin' year, which means that gas prices should stay well above $2.50 a gallon in most parts of the country until Independence Day.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

22. That refinery is a menace.

It's always had problems like this. It isn't really surprising.

[EFerrari]

30. Yes, it is a menace. But, Richmond now has a new progressive mayor.

I have a feeling we're going to be seeing some battles over this refinery -- she's a Green.

[AndyTiedye]

25. Under $2/Gallon? Where? Closer to $3 in California and Rising

[driver8]

26. I live in CA. and we have not seen gas below two dollars/gal. in a long, long, time.

The lowest I can remember seeing the past few years is about $2.35/gal.

[EFerrari]

33. And that was in Ceres?

:)

[jaksavage]

27. Oregon and Hawaii are closer in price than ever

We are paying 2.60 to 2.75 for reg unl in oregon
and just got back from hawaii and it was only 2.87
2.25 was Oregon's low point before the election/scam.
it is all B sht, free markets my *ss.

Tax it to $5 and use the money to do some real good for the environment. Not in the pockets of Hallib etc but upgrade clunker cars/smokers, mass transit, bike ways.

Learn to use this precious commodity like it was one.

Peace NOW !!!!!!!!!

[seriousstan]

31. I filled up for $1.98 in Columbus Ohio.

[proud patriot]

34. I'm in contra costa county

x(

[Roland99]

37. Well, no effect here (yet). Just filled up on the way home for $1.96.

[Trillo]

39. When it comes to CO2 emissions,

singular incidents such as these must be a relatively large slice of the single-incident emission pie chart. I'd guess it would be right up there with a space shuttle launch.

Ideally, one would hope that there's a financial disincentive for being so irresponsible, but history suggests that common people and the masses will be regulated and punished, while corporate continues to play their game of legal loopholes and environmental abandon with impunity.

[shanti]

41. again??

seems to happen on a regular basis at this facility.

[jwirr]

42. Price is not the only way to measure the cost: global warming.

[MaryBear]

43. So in 29 degree weather, "shut off ventilation"

means no heat?