Thunderstorms likely in the morning. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. Heavy and torrential downpours at times. High 87F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%..
Cloudy in the evening, then thunderstorms developing after midnight. Low 83F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Marathon firefighters and other personnel work near the scene of a crude oil leak at the Marathon Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021 .
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
Marathon firefighters and other personnel work near the scene of a crude oil leak at the Marathon Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021 .
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
This image taken from video recorded by KHOU 11 News in Houston shows oil spewing from a storage tank at Marathon Petroleum Corp.'s refinery in Texas City.
A sideways geyser of crude oil gushed from a tank in Texas City on Wednesday, leaving a mess officials said will take some time to clean up.
The spill had been contained to an area around the tank and had not escaped into waterways, however, officials said.
The oil spill began about 8 a.m. at Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s Galveston Bay Refinery, near Fourth Avenue S. and Loop 197 in Texas City.
A flange on the side of the tank failed, allowing oil in the tank to start spewing, and continue spewing oil throughout the day.
The leak was still going about 4 p.m. Wednesday, more than six hours after it began, said Bruce Clawson, Texas City’s interim emergency management coordinator.
News cameras aboard helicopters recorded the spill as the city began closing nearby roads. The Texas spill came just days after an underwater oil line in California broke and sullied miles of beaches.
The Texas City leak didn’t appear to pose a threat to Galveston Bay, Clawson said.
The tank sits about a half-mile from the closest body of water. But the oil was contained around the area of the tank by berms built to act as a secondary containment area for spills, Clawson said.
“There are great big berms around those tanks,” Clawson said. “It’s all inside those berms.”
He didn’t know how much oil the tank held. Neither he nor the company could provide an estimate on the amount of oil released as of Wednesday evening.
The ground around the tank will likely be removed as part of the cleanup, Clawson said.
The City of Texas City shut down part of Loop 197 as crews responded to the spill, but no oil escaped on to the road, Clawson said.
Firefighters sprayed foam on the leaked oil to reduce the odor, but officials said the leak didn’t pose any emission threats or any risk to the community. Clawson said he didn’t see any animals near the spill site.
Marathon contacted regulatory agencies and reported the spill, company spokesman Jamal Kheiry said.
In a statement sent at 5 p.m., Kheiry said refinery personnel were “implementing measures to control the source of the release so that responders can safely conduct cleanup activities and repairs.”
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality sent technicians to monitor air quality during the leak, an agency spokesman said.
This story has been updated with more information about the location of the leak.
John Wayne Ferguson: 409-683-5226; john.ferguson@galvnews.com or on Twitter
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