Crews Extinguish Fire Following Explosion at Chalmette Oil Refinery

Emergency crews brought a fire under control at the Chalmette Refining facility on Friday afternoon following an explosion at the site. The incident occurred around 1:00 p.m. at the refinery, which is located approximately 10 miles east of New Orleans. No injuries were reported, and company officials confirmed that all personnel working in the area were safe and accounted for.

The fire broke out within an operating unit of the facility, according to a statement from the company. The St. Bernard Fire Department assisted refinery personnel in containing the blaze. Following the incident, St. Bernard Parish officials stated that emergency response teams remained on-site to monitor the situation. According to a social media post from the parish, the refinery reported that no toxic chemicals impacted the local air quality.

Chalmette Refining is owned by New Jersey-based PBF Energy . The facility, which dates back to 1915, employs approximately 500 staff members and 200 contractors, producing about 189,000 barrels of crude oil daily. PBF Energy did not immediately provide details regarding the extent of the physical damage or whether the incident will result in a significant disruption to production.

The refinery accounts for roughly 1% of daily oil usage in the United States. Ramanan Krishnamoorti, vice president for energy and innovation at the University of Houston, noted that potential production losses could affect fuel prices across the South and Mid-South regions. The cause of the explosion remains under investigation by the company.