CSB urges CITGO to make immediate changes

The Chemical Safety Board on Dec. 9 issued urgent safety recommendations (.pdf file) to CITGO following a July 19 explosion at the company's Corpus Christi, TX, refinery that released potentially deadly hydrogen fluoride vapor.

According to a CSB press release, hydrocarbon gas at the refinery ignited, causing a fire that burned for several days. One employee was critically injured and another was treated for possible hydrocarbon fluoride exposure.

Among the recommendations, CSB urged CITGO to improve its emergency water mitigation system within 30 days and perform third-party audits of the hydrogen fluoride units at its other refineries.