CSB Holding Aug. 2 Meeting on Tesoro Incidents
CSB is currently investigating a sulfuric acid spill that occurred Feb. 12, 2014, at the refinery in Martinez, Calif. It burned two workers in the refinery's alkylation unit who were transported by air ambulance to the nearest hospital burn unit.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board is scheduled to hold a news conference Aug. 2 in Emeryville, Calif., where the board will present findings from the final case study detailing multiple sulfuric acid releases at the Tesoro refinery in Martinez, Calif. CSB is an independent federal agency that investigates industrial chemical accidents, and it is currently investigating a sulfuric acid spill that occurred Feb. 12, 2014, at the refinery. It burned two workers in the refinery's alkylation unit who were transported by air ambulance to the nearest hospital burn unit.
According to the board's website, the spill occurred when operators opened a block valve to return an acid sampling system back to service. Shortly after the valve had been fully opened, tubing directly downstream of the valve came apart, spraying two operators with acid.
The news conference is scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m. local time at the Hilton Garden Inn (1800 Powell Street, Emeryville), and the board will present the final case study there, with staffers and CSB's chairman, Vanessa Allen Sutherland, briefing news media on the investigation's findings.
The following day, San Antonio-based Tesoro Corporation is scheduled to release its earnings for the second quarter of 2016 and to hold a conference call with analysts. The live conference call will be available online via www.tsocorp.com.
The company operates seven refineries in North Dakota, Utah, California, Alaska, and Washington state. The Martinez refinery is the second-largest refinery in northern California, according to the company's online list of those facilities.