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Shell Has Fire at Deer Park, Texas, Refinery After Gasket Leak

Bloomberg

 

 

Shell Has Fire at Deer Park, Texas, Refinery After Gasket Leak 

By Samantha Zee

Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s largest oil company, said a gasket flange leak on a unit at its Deer Park, Texas, refinery ignited yesterday and burned for more than two hours.

The leak and fire occurred about 8 p.m. local time as refinery operators were starting the Plat 2 unit last night after it had been shut down last month in preparation for Hurricane Ike, according to a filing on the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s Web site.

There were no “visible emissions” as a result of the fire, the report said, citing unidentified witnesses to the blaze. The incident is now under investigation, Shell said in the filing.

Feedstock to the reactor was discontinued after the leak was discovered and operators focused on extinguishing the flames. Shell’s Emergency Response Team was dispatched to help tackle the blaze and keep the surrounding equipment cool, the report said.

Dave McKinney, a Shell spokesman for the refinery, didn’t immediately return a telephone call left after regular business hours.

The Deer Park refinery can process 340,000 barrels of oil a day, according to the U.S. Energy Department.

To contact the reporter on this story: Samantha Zee in Los Angeles at[email protected]

Last Updated: October 1, 2008 20:54 EDT

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