Explosion Rocks Huge Refinery Near Louisiana Capitol; 1 Dead

A thunderous explosion rocked an Exxon refinery Sunday, setting tanks full of heating oil and lubricants on fire, killing one person and slightly injuring several workers, officials said.

The blast at the nation’s second-largest refinery occurred 2 miles north of the state Capitol, and it could be felt up to 15 miles away. Looters struck stores where windows were blown out, and National Guardsmen were sent to help police.

A plume of smoke rose 500 feet as flames engulfed five storage tanks holding more than 4 million gallons of oil and two separator units, which remove water from oil, officials said.

Exxon firefighters battled the blaze, and the refinery was sealed off, officials said.

“We suspect a gas release caused it,” Ed Galante, plant manager, said.

An employee of a subcontractor doing work at the plant was killed when the pickup truck he was in caught fire in the explosion, worker David Abshire said outside the refinery.

Galante confirmed that an employee of a subcontractor died. He would not release the worker’s identity pending notification of family members.

Two workers were hospitalized, one with a strained back and one with an injured knee, he said. Another worker was treated and released, and an undetermined number of others had minor injuries that did not require hospitalization.

The blast knocked out electric power and telephone service in the area and halted production at the plant, which sits along the Mississippi River in the North Baton Rouge area.

Windows up to 6 miles away were shattered, and the looters invaded damaged businesses in a nearby low-income neighborhood, police said. Gov. Buddy Roemer activated 50 National Guardsmen to help police stop the looting. Police said they had no reports of arrests.

Roemer, who went to the scene of the disaster, was at the governor’s mansion near the Capitol when the explosion occurred.

“I heard this big blast,” he said. “I was enjoying Christmas Eve with the family. It didn’t break any glass, but it blew open two big garage doors down in the basement, and those doors were locked.”

Galante said the number of injured workers was undetermined. “We have many cuts and bruises on the grounds but only two have been hospitalized,” he said.

The company also reported a number of people were unaccounted for, said Dan D’Armond, a U.S. Department of Energy official who was in Baton Rouge for the holidays.

Civil Defense workers, state officials and reporters went to the edge of the refinery. A 4-square-mile area around the plant was closed, including a section of Interstate 110.

Exxon spokesman Ron Embry said he did not know if the fire would add to any shortages of home heating oil during this season’s record cold.