Potential Catastrophe Could Have Gassed Los Angeles

A potential catastrophe was narrowly avoided when an explosion badly damaged ExxonMobil’s Torrance refinery in February, according to a CBS News report aired today.

Vanessa Allen Sutherland, the chairperson of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, the lead agency investigating the blast, said in the report that the explosion sent a piece of equipment weighing about 36 tons narrowly flying about 100 feet.

The piece narrowly missed a tank containing toxic hydrofluoric acid, which if released could have sent a choking chemical cloud through highly- populated areas, according to CBS News.

An image submitted to federal regulators and aired on the “CBS Evening News,” showed the aftermath of the near miss.

As it was, the Feb. 18 blast rained a substance on nearby neighborhoods and residents were told they were in no danger from what was called a catalyst used in the refining process.

Four workers were injured in the blast, which led state regulators to issue 19 citations against ExxonMobil and propose penalties totaling $566,600. Cal/OSHA officials said a 2007 safety review found problems with flammable vapor in the plant’s electrostatic precipitator, but no corrective actions were taken. Regulators noted that the plant’s fluid catalytic cracker had not been working properly for as long as nine years prior to the blast.

A preliminary report by the South Coast Air Quality Management District determined the blast was caused by over-pressurization in the electrostatic precipitator -- an air-pollution-control system.

ExxonMobil told CBS News it strongly disagrees with the assessment that there was significant threat to the hydrofluoric acid tank and referred questions about the risk of the chemical to the Western States Petroleum Association.

A phone message left by City News Service after the close of usual business hours for a representative of the Sacramento-based trade group was not immediately returned.

The refinery, which has been out of operation since the blast, was sold to New Jersey-based oil refining company PBF Energy, the buyer announced today.

The $527.5 million deal expected to close in the second quarter of 2016.

The deal, subject to “customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals,” will also not be closed until the refinery is “restored to full working order,” according to PBF Energy.

Members of Consumer Watchdog, a Santa Monica-based consumer advocacy group, have been critical of ExxonMobil’s actions following the blast, recently accusing the company of refusing to turn over documents and hiding a key employee from investigator.

-City News Service; CBS News screen grab