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Statement on Chevron Richmond Refinery Incident
August 6th, 2012. 19:50 PT.
A fire started at our 4 Crude Unit at 6:15 pm today. At this time we do not have details about the cause of the incident. All employees have been safely accounted for. One employee HAS A MINOR INJURY and is receiving first aid treatment.
We have comprehensive plans and procedures in place to respond to situations like the one we are facing. We are working with all appropriate local authorities.
We will take all measures necessary to provide for the safety and security of our facilities and the surrounding community.
We are responding to this incident as quickly as we can and are deploying highly trained personnel to assess and manage the situation.
We will not speculate on the cause of this incident. Our priority right now is containing the fire and protecting the health and safety of our employees and community.
We will provide updates as more information can be confirmed.
They are literally telling people don't breathe the air but downplaying the danger of several metric tons of assorted hydrocarbons permeating the atmosphere of California's most densely populated Bay. Richmond, California is on the east side of the northern section of the bay.
Map of danger area
IMPORTANT: If you live in that area and you have any open wound cover it in salve like neosporin and cover it with a bandaid.
Richmond is home to over 100,000 people, approximately 82 percent of whom are listed as minorities by the United States Census. Seventeen thousand people live within just three miles of the [Chevron] refinery—some of them in the two housing projects located there. The majority are low-income people of color.
Last summer, Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) conducted a health survey of 440 adults and 282 children from Richmond and found that 46 percent of the adults and 17 percent of the children surveyed suffer from asthma.[6] The longer a person lived in Richmond, the greater the likelihood that they would suffer from asthma.[7] Local community organizations, as well as individuals, have come to recognize the link between the community’s health problems and the high level of pollution in the area. In March, 2008 a coalition of groups shut down the front entrance to Chevron’s Richmond refinery; 24 were arrested. Also, since 2007, protests have been held at every annual shareholder meeting at Chevron’s headquarters in San Ramon against injustices committed in communities around the world.
In September 2008, CBE, West County Toxics Coalition, and the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) brought a lawsuit against Chevron and the City of Richmond to stop the refinery’s expansion project, which was in violation of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Chevron’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR) to the city was not comprehensive enough to disclose that the expansion would enable the refining of heavier and more contaminated oil. Yet, the City of Richmond granted permits for this project, despite the consequences and the community’s “right to know.”
If the winds shift and blow from the North population centers will be saturated by a blanket of atomized and partially burned petroleum products. Early tweets indicated it was the fuel area but any fire there is a losing proposition.
Right now Chevron should not only be making sure the firefighters have every resource at their command. (Yes I said it Chevron should dump money on this now.) But that area hospitals are equipped for the respiratory casualties this will create. Actually they should have done that already.
We need to ensure that the families impacted by this as well as any ecological faults are dealt with swiftly and responsibly to protect the fragile bay ecosystem.
Mon Aug 06, 2012 at 9:27 PM PT:
Chevron can you explain differences in the the puff pr piece above and this:
The fire broke out around 6:15 p.m. local time at the refinery's crude distillation unit, which was also leaking petroleum, Chevron said in a filing with the California Emergency Management Agency, adding that there were no fatalities.
A spokesman for the Richmond Police Dept. said local residents have been told to shelter in place.
The fire caused the refinery to emit large clouds of sulfuric acid and nitrogen dioxide, Chevron said in the filing.
9:30: Emergency rooms "packed" in San Pablo with people reporting breating problems. People are also now wearing masks.
Mon Aug 06, 2012 at 9:48 PM PT:
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