A fire broke out overnight at the Baytown, Texas, ExxonMobil plant, which left four people injured, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO).
The HCSO classified the incident, which occurred around 1:00 a.m. local time, as “a major industrial accident” in a tweet early Thursday.
“Initial reports indicated some type of explosion occurred inside the plant,” tweeted Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of the HCSO, but noted information is still preliminary.
Three people were transported via life flight, while another was taken to a hospital via ambulance, according to the HCSO. No fatalities have been reported.
Refinery manager Rohan Davis said everyone else on the scene had been accounted for, per the Associated Press. Davis also stated the four who were transported were in stable condition, CNN reported.
Davis, who spoke at a 5:30 a.m. press conference, could not confirm whether an explosion took place, according to NBC news.
“At this time, we’re still collecting all that information,” he said before adding, “We will conduct a full and thorough investigation.”
Davis said the fire occurred in a portion of the plant that manufactures gasoline, according to CNN. The manager added that the refinery’s emergency workers were still battling the blaze before sunrise.
“ExxonMobil said air quality monitoring has not revealed any issues,” the Associated Press reported. “No evacuations or shelter-in-place orders have been issued.”
ExxonMobil’s Baytown operations are located on roughly 3,400 acres along the Houston Ship Channel — some 25 miles east of Houston — according to the company’s website. The Baytown operation “is comprised of four manufacturing sites, including one in nearby Mont Belvieu, and a global technology center. ”
The plant employs approximately 7,000 workers and can manufacture 584,000 barrels of crude oil each day, according to Exxon Mobil.
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