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A massive explosion rocked the Valero oil refinery in Port Arthur, Texas on Monday (March 23), sending large plumes of smoke and flames into the sky and prompting officials to order nearby residents to shelter in place. By Tuesday (March 24), the fire was out and the shelter-in-place order had been lifted.
Officials said that no one was hurt in the blast. Port Arthur Mayor Charlotte M. Moses confirmed that all refinery workers were accounted for.
"There's been an explosion, yes, but we're OK; everybody's OK," Moses said. "They're trying to put the fire out as quickly as possible."
The Valero refinery sits about 90 miles east of Houston and employs roughly 770 people. The plant can process up to 435,000 barrels of oil per day, converting heavy sour crude oil into gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.
The force of the blast was felt for miles. Residents living several miles away reported that their homes shook. Some local schools were closed on Tuesday (March 24) as a precaution, even after officials lifted the shelter-in-place order for parts of the city's west side.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) sent air monitoring equipment to the site and was working alongside local and state partners to assess conditions.
Jefferson County Sheriff Zena Stephens said that the initial belief from investigators is that the explosion was caused by an industrial heater malfunction.