http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703778104576286472073293778.html
I need to double check, but I’m pretty sure this is the former CITGO refinery that has the special equipment necessary to refine the super heavy crude from Venezuela – which is very difficult to refine. BP was going to do work on the plant to increase its energy efficiency and stop trying to refine crude for Huga Chavez’s Citgo.
I’m confident this has nothing to do with events in the world and is just a routine coincidence.
It also has nothing to do with IED found by the side of the road near Browsville, TX down at the Mexican border
Marathon’s and Valero’s refineries also were shut down by the power outage – but BP’s caught fire temporarily, which is what made it more serious.
there was a “shelter in place”…which has now been lifted…
Texas City power outages: grid operator takes some blame, shelter in place lifted *update*
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2011/04/26/texas-city-power-outages-not-a-grid-issue-salt-may-be-to-blame/
Don’t these plants have auto shut-down/Containment proceedures as required by law? Especially considering how we are still dealing with the consequences of losing power to the reactors in Japan. A person brought up a good point about breathing in the “build up of salt and industrial polutants” in the comment section. makes me glad i live way up here….untill i think about Canadian border (In)Security 60 miles north of me.
I thought I wrote it here, but I don’t see it. My guess was that the “fire” was nothing more than the standard process as you described for an emergency shutdown of a refinery – that gases in the pipes are vented and ignited on purpose so nothing explodes.
The danger comes if the local fire department people think there is something they need to “fix” and then create a real serious danger. My impression is most refineries have an on staff full time fire department and do extensive training and coordination with local fire departments so they don’t do something stupid.
arm yourself