PBF Energy was forced to shut down its 156,400-bpd Martinez Refinery after a fire broke out during planned maintenance activities on Saturday. The fire was contained to the refinery, with company fire personnel and firefighters from the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District battling the blaze. A shelter-in-place alert for parts of Martinez, issued three hours after the fire began, was lifted just before 9:30 p.m. Saturday, and officials said the fire was under control by Sunday morning. Six workers were treated for minor injuries sustained in the fire.
The root cause of the hydrocarbon leak and subsequent fire are still under investigation, but the refinery released the following statement:
At approximately 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 1, 2025, two workers were opening equipment at the refinery in preparation for planned maintenance on one of the refinery’s process units. Upon opening the equipment, the workers encountered a leak of hydrocarbon material. The workers immediately evacuated the area, and the material subsequently caught fire. Both of those workers were transported offsite for medical evaluation and released. The fire then spread within the immediate vicinity.
MRC’s fire crews quickly responded and began suppressing the fire. They called for mutual aid from industry partners and support from Contra Costa Fire Protection District (ConFire).
To manage the response, MRC, ConFire, and the Martinez Police Department formed a Unified Command, which allows multiple agencies and organizations to effectively work together. By approximately 8:30 p.m., the fire was suppressed to the point the Unified Command transitioned back to MRC, which continues to manage the incident response with continuing support from our mutual aid partners.
We are deeply sorry for the disruption and concern this incident has caused the community. After the response is complete, we will thoroughly investigate the incident in accordance with the Contra Costa County Industrial Safety Ordinance (ISO) to identify the root cause and take appropriate corrective actions. We will continue to work collaboratively with all agencies involved, and thank our employees, mutual aid partners, and agency representatives for their support in responding to the incident.
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