Massive inferno as fire breaks out at Washington State oil refinery
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-Pastor-Dale-Morgan-
Feb 18, 2012, 3:06:18 AM2/18/12
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Massive inferno as fire breaks out at Washington State oil refinery
AP
February 18, 2012 6:02PM
US fire crews work to doused an intense inferno that broke out at Washington's largest oil refinery, sending up huge waves of towering flames and creating a thick plume of black smoke.
Workers at the BP Cherry Point refinery near Blaine in northwest Washington's Whatcom County were evacuated shortly after the fire started at about 2:30pm in a tower on the refinery's south side.
The Bellingham Herald reported that about 100 evacuated workers gathered in a parking lot to watch the flames.
All employees and contractors who were at the site were safe and accounted for, Dean said, although he could not provide a precise figure last night (today AEDT).
Dean couldn't say what the tower is normally used for or what it contained.
Television footage showed fire crews sending massive streams of water onto the fire and also using retardant foam to douse the flames.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the fire or the extent of damage.
The refinery continues to produce products for customers, Dean said, adding it was "too soon to speculate on future supply impacts".
The refinery employs more than 800 people and can process as much as 230,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Alaska.
From that amount, the refinery has the ability to produce 2.5 million gallons of jet fuel, 3.5 million gallons of petrol, 2.2 million gallons of diesel, 360,000 gallons of butane and 140,000 gallons of propane.
According to the BP website, the refinery is the largest supplier of fuel for the Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver, British Columbia, airports.
It also provides 20 per cent of Washington state's gasoline, the website said.
The refinery was fined more than $US69,000 ($A64,400) in 2010 for 13 serious safety violations, state Department of Labor and Industries spokesman Hector Castro said.
He added that all five of the state's refineries have been fined for safety regulations.
Inspectors were heading to Cherry Point to investigate the fire .
Massive inferno as fire breaks out at Washington State oil refinery
AP
February 18, 2012 6:02PM
US fire crews work to doused an intense inferno that broke out at Washington's largest oil refinery, sending up huge waves of towering flames and creating a thick plume of black smoke.
Workers at the BP Cherry Point refinery near Blaine in northwest Washington's Whatcom County were evacuated shortly after the fire started at about 2:30pm in a tower on the refinery's south side.
The Bellingham Herald reported that about 100 evacuated workers gathered in a parking lot to watch the flames.
All employees and contractors who were at the site were safe and accounted for, Dean said, although he could not provide a precise figure last night (today AEDT).
Dean couldn't say what the tower is normally used for or what it contained.
Television footage showed fire crews sending massive streams of water onto the fire and also using retardant foam to douse the flames.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the fire or the extent of damage.
The refinery continues to produce products for customers, Dean said, adding it was "too soon to speculate on future supply impacts".
The refinery employs more than 800 people and can process as much as 230,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Alaska.
From that amount, the refinery has the ability to produce 2.5 million gallons of jet fuel, 3.5 million gallons of petrol, 2.2 million gallons of diesel, 360,000 gallons of butane and 140,000 gallons of propane.
According to the BP website, the refinery is the largest supplier of fuel for the Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver, British Columbia, airports.
It also provides 20 per cent of Washington state's gasoline, the website said.
The refinery was fined more than $US69,000 ($A64,400) in 2010 for 13 serious safety violations, state Department of Labor and Industries spokesman Hector Castro said.
He added that all five of the state's refineries have been fined for safety regulations.
Inspectors were heading to Cherry Point to investigate the fire .
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