ExxonMobil Explosion Lawyers
Undefeated Plant and Refinery Accident Attorneys
As one of the world’s largest energy conglomerates, ExxonMobil operates petrochemical plants and oil refineries throughout the world, including Texas and Louisiana, where its footprint is especially significant.
Unfortunately, in recent years, explosions, fires, and other dangerous accidents that resulted in multiple severe injuries, catastrophic burns, and even deaths at ExxonMobil facilities across the country have left the company’s reputation in tatters and raised serious questions about its commitment to safety.
December 2021: ExxonMobil Olefins Explosion Injures 4 in Baytown, Texas
On December 23, 2021, an explosion at the ExxonMobil Olefins Plant in Baytown, Texas, sent four workers to the hospital, including three who sustained second and third-degree burns and another who suffered a broken femur.
The blast erupted around 1:00 a.m. local time, jolting Baytown residents from their sleep and triggering a fire that would continue to burn for several hours. While it’s still unclear what might have ignited the explosion, the company confirmed that the incident occurred on a gas-producing unit inside the plant.
The explosion remains under investigation.
July 2019: ExxonMobil Olefins Plant Explosion Injures Over 40 Workers
Located about 25 miles east of Houston, the ExxonMobil Olefins Plant is part of the company’s sprawling Baytown Complex, a 3,400 acres site along the Houston Ship Channel that also includes a chemical plant and refinery. Founded in 1919, the Complex now ranks as the second-largest refining operation in the United States and the fourth-largest globally, boasting a production capacity of 584,000 barrels per day and employing more than 22,000 workers.
Unfortunately, the December 23rd explosion wasn’t the first serious incident involving the ExxonMobil Olefins plant in Baytown. In fact, on July 31, 2019, an explosion on a recovery unit within the same facility sent more than 40 workers to area hospitals with injuries that ranged from mild to serious.
Areas of Baytown west of the facility and south of Highway 330 were also subject to a shelter-in-place order that remained in effect for over three hours.
March 2019: ExxonMobil Baytown Complex Furnace Fire
The ExxonMobil Baytown Complex was also the site of a furnace fire on March 16, 2019.
While no one was hurt in connection with that incident, the blaze sent a plume of flames and smoke into the air around Houston for several hours before it was extinguished.
According to Harris County Officials, the site continued to release toxic chemicals for eight more days. The county later sued ExxonMobil, claiming the incident “resulted in the emission of multiple air pollutants, including propylene, LPG, propane, and associated products of combustion and accusing the company of violating the Texas Clean Air Act.”
December 2017: Contractor Killed at ExxonMobil Baytown Complex
On December 1, 2017, a 31-year-old contractor working construction at the Baytown Complex died tragically when a falling pipe struck her in the head.
The victim was employed as a pipefitter’s assistant by Echo Maintenance, LLC, a company based in Port Arthur, Texas, that performs maintenance and construction at refineries in Texas, Louisiana, and New Mexico. She left behind two little girls.
November 2016: 4 Injured in Explosion at ExxonMobil Baton Rouge Refinery
On November 22, 2016, a massive explosion at the ExxonMobil refinery in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, injured four workers, including one who sustained catastrophic burns and another thrown from a scaffold and left dangling over the resulting fire.
A subsequent investigation determined that the explosion was caused by a malfunctioning valve that leaked highly volatile isobutane. The released gas was ignited by a welding machine located 70 feet away.
OSHA later fined ExxonMobil $165,000 for nine safety violations, including insufficient training and lack of equipment maintenance. Just four years earlier, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cited the company for ignoring corroded pipes and valves at the Baton Rouge refinery that were necessary for shutdown and emergency procedures, indicating that faulty valves were a known issue long before the November 2016 explosion.
A second fire broke out at the same ExxonMobil facility nearly one year later. Fortunately, no one was injured in that incident.
February 2015: ExxonMobil Refinery Explosion Rocks Torrance, California
Shortly before 9:00 a.m. on February 18, 2015, an explosion erupted at the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance, California, sending a huge plume of smoke and flames over the surrounding area. The blast apparently ignited in the refinery’s electrostatic precipitators, located in a unit undergoing a maintenance shutdown.
Four workers were hurt, and students at a dozen schools were forced to shelter-in-place as ash fell from the sky.
Investigators ultimately found that multiple safety deficiencies had led to the explosion, including management’s failure to identify hazardous conditions. ExxonMobil received 19 safety citations and fines totaling $556,000 in connection with the blast.
March 2013: ExxonMobil Pegasus Pipeline Rupture
On March 29, 2013, the rupture of ExxonMobil’s 65-year-old Pegasus pipeline spewed 210,000 gallons of heavy Canadian crude oil diluted with large quantities of harmful solvents onto the quiet residential streets of Mayflower, Arkansas, a working-class community of 2,000 people near Little Rock.
Hundreds were sickened by a noxious odor, with many soon reporting symptoms that included vicious headaches, diarrhea, swollen eyes, dry heaves, and burning lungs. More than 20 homes had to be evacuated, and the EPA declared the disaster a “major spill.”
Investigators later identified several problems with the pipe, including hook cracks, extremely low impact toughness, and elongation properties, as the cause of the spill. The low-frequency electric resistance weld used to make that particular section was known to have weaknesses with hook cracks and hardness issues.
In 2015, ExxonMobil settled charges that it violated the federal Clean Water Act and state environmental laws for $5.07 million, including $4.19 million in civil penalties. However, the company did not admit liability.
April 2013: ExxonMobil Beaumont Refinery Fire Leaves 2 Dead
On April 17, 2013, a fire erupted on a processing unit undergoing maintenance at the ExxonMobil refinery in Beaumont, Texas. The incident occurred while contractors used a welding torch to remove bolts from the top of a heat exchanger. Unfortunately, the torch came into contact with and ignited hydrocarbons as they escaped the exchanger.
A dozen contractors were rushed to a hospital in Galveston. While five were treated and released the same day, seven were hospitalized with severe burns. Two would later die.
OSHA eventually fined ExxonMobil and two contract firms more than $67,000 for workplace safety violations in connection with the Beaumont refinery blaze. Nearly six years later, the company agreed to pay a $616,000 civil penalty as part of a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve federal Clean Air Act violations allegedly connected with that incident.
Undefeated ExxonMobil Explosion Lawyers: Call 1-888-603-3636 or Click Here For a Free Consultation.
Having won Billions – including the #1 Largest Burn Settlement in U.S. History and the #1 Largest Verdicts and Settlements in Texas – our ExxonMobil Plant and Refinery Explosion Lawyers have the experience and resources to take on the largest and most powerful petrochemical companies in the world and win record-breaking verdicts and settlements for our clients.
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