A powerful explosion occurred in the city of Port Arthur at one of the largest oil refineries in the country - Valero Port Arthur Refinery - after which part of the production capacity was halted.
According to KFDM, the fire started at the diesel hydrotreater unit. Firefighters managed to localize the fire, but it was not possible to completely extinguish the blaze immediately due to residual fuel at the site.
The refinery is among the largest in the USA: its capacity is about 435,000 barrels of oil per day, accounting for approximately 1–2% of the country's total oil refining. The facility is located in the Gulf Coast area - a key oil refining corridor that accounts for nearly half of the refining capacity in the USA.
The official causes of the explosion have not yet been announced. Preliminary information suggests that the incident may have occurred due to a malfunction of an industrial heater.
It is noted that this is already the second such incident in the state of Texas in the last two weeks.
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