Available 24/7/365
Free Consultations
(800) 349-0000
The leading causes of Texas City refinery explosions include safety violations, human error, poor maintenance, faulty equipment, and improperly stored chemicals.
Following a Texas City refinery explosion, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) can investigate. This helps the agency determine the cause and if any penalties are warranted.
Texas City refineries are required to comply with OSHA regulations. However, some fail to comply with OSHA rules.
An OSHA safety violation increases the risk of issues that can contribute to a Texas City refinery explosion. In addition, a refinery in violation of OSHA rules can face fines and other penalties.
A Texas City refinery is responsible for developing and implementing a safety program and teaching its workers how to protect against mistakes.
If a refinery employee lacks sufficient training, this individual is increasingly susceptible to mistakes that can contribute to explosions.
Refinery supervisors are responsible for monitoring employees and verifying that they are working in accordance with OSHA rules and workplace safety protocols.
If a refinery supervisor ignores worker mistakes or does not address them properly, these issues can escalate, and they can ultimately lead to explosions.
Texas City refineries use boilers, pumps, tanks, and other equipment, all of which need to be maintained in alignment with strict guidelines.
Ideally, a refinery has a routine maintenance program, with equipment inspections completed by qualified workers and overseen by managers with relevant training and experience.
Yet, there are times when refineries don’t allocate the time and resources necessary to sustain this type of program.
At these times, refinery equipment can malfunction, which has the potential to cause an explosion.
Even if a Texas City refinery has a maintenance program in effect, it’s possible that the equipment in use has a faulty design or was constructed poorly.
Defects in refinery equipment can sometimes be identified through inspections. Regardless, if a refinery doesn’t perform regular inspections, such issues can linger, and they can contribute to an explosion.
A Texas City refinery can utilize volatile chemicals to purify extracted oil.
If these chemicals aren’t stored properly, they can leak from their storage containers and become exposed to extreme temperatures, which can cause an explosion.
A Texas City refinery explosion can cause severe burns, vision loss, and other injuries or death to workers and nearby residents. It can also result in health problems for those exposed to chemicals.
Texas City refinery explosions can limit the production of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. In addition, contaminants from these explosions can damage nearby waterways, soil, and wildlife habitats.
People harmed in a Texas City refinery explosion may have grounds for suing a Texas City refinery for compensatory damages covering their pain and suffering, medical bills, and other losses.
The families of people who died in a Texas City refinery explosion are sometimes eligible to seek compensation on behalf of a deceased person (decedent) through a wrongful death lawsuit.