14 Die in Blast at BP Refinery in Texas

A fiery explosion with plumes of black smoke shattered a chemical unit at the huge BP oil refinery in Texas City near Galveston on Wednesday afternoon, killing at least 14 people and injuring more than 100, the authorities said.

"There are still some people who are not accounted for," the refinery manager, said Wednesday night, hours after the fire was reported to be extinguished.

The refinery manager said that the cause was not yet determined but that the explosion occurred in an isomerization unit, which raises the octane level of gasoline. A BP spokeswoman, said foul play was not suspected.

Fire engines and police cars roared in and out of the plant, and medical helicopters swooped in on evacuation missions. "When a chopper would come in, another would take off," said a Sgt. of the Texas City Fire Department. "It looked like a small war zone of bodies being loaded up."

The plant, BP's largest in the nation, has 1,800 employees, is spread over 1,200 acres and refines 460,000 barrels of crude oil a day. It is considered "the most complex facility in the world," said another company spokesman. The plant is still operating.

Almost a year ago, on March 31, 2004, a series of explosions rocked the refinery, with no reported loss of life. In April 1947, Texas City was the site of the country's worst accident when ammonium nitrate stored in two ships docked at the port exploded, nearly obliterating Texas City and claiming at least 576 lives.

In the wake of Wednesday's explosion, a seven-member investigation team from the United States Chemical Safety Board was scheduled to arrive at the site Thursday. A board member, called it "a very serious accident" and described the situation as "very bad."

A BP spokesman, said the plant had been shut down for its annual major maintenance, a process called "turnaround," and it was gradually being brought back on stream when the explosion occurred. Industry experts pointed out that explosions at refineries have usually happened during the turnaround, when processes are in flux, rather than when a unit is fully up.

The plant is supplied by pipeline and ship, mainly with oil from Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, the BP spokesman said.

"This will have a huge impact on the plant," said a spokeswoman for BP America in Houston. "But it won't shut it down."

24/03/2005