Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. Times staff writer Tony Barboza contributed to this report. 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 blast caused serious property damage to the refinery and scattered catalyst dust up to a mile away from the facility into the nearby community. The crowd gathered at 10 a.m. at Columbia Park on 190th Street, cheering the remarks of Lieu, Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi and other speakers, before marching the short distance to the refinery. Four people were injured in an explosion at an apartment building in Torrance Sunday afternoon, officials said. There were also questions asking why the emergency refinery sirens did not sound following the accident. The explosion, the report said, launched a 40-ton piece of debris that nearly struck tanks carrying tens of thousands of pounds of MHF. For decades, hydrofluoric acid was a standard chemical in oil refining, serving as a catalyst during a process known as alkylation. Officials were investigating the cause of the over-pressurization. The explosion, which happened . Tests have shown that MHF, which Torrance has used since 1997, rapidly expands upon release and can travel at lethal concentrations up to two miles, according to a presentation from AQMD staff. Instead, if a leak occurred, a ground-hugging liquid cloud would form, according to a 2018 report from the Torrance refinery defending its use of the chemical. The four victims were found suffering varying degrees on injuries. And Torrance receives about $7.5 million annually in utility user taxes from the refinerys operation. 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. Thousands of people could have been harmed if the MHF had dispersed beyond the Torrance refinery in 2015, the CSB report said. The refinery has been under constant scrutiny since the explosion as small fires and flare ups have been reported since and raised concern among residents living nearby. No further details were immediately available. The governors office confirmed they received the request, but declined further comment. The proposal had plenty of support: Reps. Nanette Barragan, Ted Lieu and Maxine Waters wrote letters urging the AQMD to pass the rule and phase MHF out of Southern California. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Feb . Across California, CA | News | 15h. Refinery spokeswoman Betsy Brien said the fire was quickly extinguished and the Del Amo Boulevard barriers were activated to close the road under an abundance of caution.. 6 Min Read. 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. 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.. We knew we were moving in next to a refinery it was here before we were, Cliff Heise said in an interview. April 8, 2018 / 2:50 PM 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 . Organizers estimated the crowd size at more than 400. The LA County Department of Public Health and former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra followed suit. The motion the LA County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed in mid-February asks Gov. All rights reserved. Those calls for a ban remain. The PBF Energy facility has been plagued with a series of incidents since the massive blast two years ago that almost caused a catastrophic release of highly toxic hydrofluoric acid that could have killed and injured thousands. Explosion at Torrance refinery - Los Angeles Times SUBSCRIBE Copyright 2022, Los Angeles Times | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | CA Notice of Collection | Do Not Sell My Personal. All communications are private and confidential. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. "You could feel it," said refinery worker Jason Hernandez. 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. The shaking was felt primarily in the immediate vicinity of the refinery, according to Caltech. 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. 46,739 visits in the last 30 days. Principal Office: Houston Texas. The explosion also spurred a movement among residents to oppose MHF. California workplace regulators fined ExxonMobil more than $500 million for the violations related to the explosion. Living in such close proximity to the refinery, Donna Heise said, makes it hard for the couple to ignore the chemicals potential dangers. Those safety enhancements, Lafayette said, include installing a new protective steel structure, water mitigation dome and curtain, an enhanced HF/MHF detection system, and additional water mitigation monitors. 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. Liz Odendahl, Hahns spokeswoman, said in an interview that the supervisor was furious at the AQMDs decision to accept the refineries proffers. mostrar anuncios y contenido personalizados basados en perfiles de inters; medir la efectividad de los anuncios y el contenido personalizados, y. desarrollar y mejorar nuestros productos y servicios. Eight workers were decontaminated at the scene. All the while, officials at those facilities have defended the chemicals use as safe. 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. The rule would have required a gradual phase-out of MHF usage at both refineries, requiring an alternative catalyst, such as sulfuric acid. If that was the case, we wouldnt have seen another explosion today, she added. Fill out the form below for a free case review with one of our experienced personal injury lawyers. And then the people who were right by just felt a shake, like an earthquake.. The refinery completed those improvements in 2020. The Oscars will air on ABC and can be streamed on ABC.com and the ABC app as well as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV or FuboTV. CSB Releases Final Report into 2015 Explosion at ExxonMobil Refinery in Torrance, California, Drivers of Critical Chemical Safety Change, Process Safety Management for the 21st Century, Emergency Planning and Response (Preparedness), Website design & development by Americaneagle.com. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. 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. Environmentalists and activists, though, argue that the additives levels in MHF have significantly decreased since the modified versions creation. That 2015 blast registered as a small earthquake that shook nearby houses, injured four of the facilitys workers and covered the area in dust and ash. Inside the refinery, the explosion blew off parts of an electrostatic precipitator and damaged other equipment at the plant. 2022 Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers. Paige Austin, Patch Staff. Having affordable fuel that is readily available is a vital part of the California economy.. The SCAQMD didnt comment on Hahns request for the organization to reexamine the viability of alternative technologies to MHF, some of which may be more commercially available than they were at the time of the vote. Of the injured, two were said to have sustained significant injuries. They claim nothing has been done, she added, without any proof, other than their beliefs, which are incorrect and misleading.. 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. Since then, at least one leak of hydrofluoric acid and several fires have prompted the South Coast Air Quality Management District to propose a ban on hydrofluoric acid. But the consequences, according to federal investigators, could have been far worse: The explosion, investigators wrote in a report two years later, nearly released tons of modified hydrofluoric acid, potentially putting thousands in the South Bay at risk. When you think about it, she said, it makes you not want to sleep at night.. "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 CSBs report emphasizes that it is critical that hydrocarbons do not flow into the air side of the FCC unit, as this can create an explosive atmosphere. TORRANCE TODAY - FEBRUARY 16, 2023 - City of Torrance TorranceCitiCABLE 4.15K subscribers 113 views 1 day ago #184 1. The CSB notes that it is vital to ensure that safety critical equipment can successfully carry out its intended function. Caltech officials said the explosion created ground shaking that was equivalent to a magnitude-1.7 earthquake. All rights reserved. In September, the South Coast Air Quality Management District governing board voted instead to accept a voluntary oil industry pledge to enhance safety measures. 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.. There, too, the Torrance refinery has disagreed. Refineries are not supposed to have explosions. But we had no idea about the danger.. Hahn who left the agencys board in December 2019 was one of two votes opposed to accepting the proffers. Unfortunately, ExxonMobil, the owner-operator of the refinery at the time of the accident, did not respond to the CSBs requests for information detailing safeguards to prevent or mitigate a release of MHF, and therefore the agency was unable to fully explore this topic in its final report. 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 explosion occurred in the refinerys fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit, where a variety of products, mainly gasoline, are produced. There was no sign of an announced safety rally at the refinery PBF had planned to hold for workers as a counterpoint to the demonstration so they could reflect upon the (2015) incident.. Please enter valid email address to continue. "I have second thoughts about being out here right now," said resident Anthony Scales. And it directs L.A. County to support any new legislation that would help phase out MHF. The explosion sent ash raining down on vehicles parked near the sprawling 750-acre site and caused what one worker described as intense shaking. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. Three dozen firefighters knocked down the blaze within a half-hour. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. "It was like a loud sonic boom. A Philadelphia native, she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in medical anthropology and global health. Refinery officials, though, say MHF was specifically designed to be safer than its non-modified original hydrofluoric acid and has been reviewed by experts and deemed the best catalyst for the refining process. 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. Alex Wigglesworth is an environment reporter who covers wildfires for the Los Angeles Times. 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 blast was reported at the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance, California. It was unclear what caused the fire. in communication and M.S. Posted Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 5:20 pm PT. While the unit where the blast occurred was ordered shut down, the rest of the refinery is still in operation. More information will be added as soon as it becomes available. The CSB determined that on the day of the incident a slide valve that acted as a barrier failed.