Booming Fire Tears Through Offices at Wilmington Refinery

WILMINGTON - Flames engulfed an administrative office building early this morning as Firefighters battled a massive fire at the ConocoPhillips Refinery.

The call was made at 4:22 am on January 16, 2012 by a passerby who noticed fire in a second-floor window of a two-story, administrative building at 1660 West Anaheim Street in Wilmington. First on-scene resources confirmed a large portion of the second floor fully-involved in flames.


A quick and aggressive interior fire-attack was made on the 75' x 300' structure of masonry construction, as companies on the Spanish tile roof assisted by cutting ventilation holes.

It was only 30 minutes into the incident, however, that Firefighters experienced a partial roof collapse of the nearly 100 year-old structure and the decision was made by the Incident Commander to pull all Firefighters off and out of the structure.

By that time, over 160 Firefighters had been called to the scene of this "Major Emergency Structure Fire".

Firefighters continued their diligent work hoping to prevent this blaze from extending to any of the adjacent structures on the property. Large hosestreams were targeted from the exterior on the now well-entrenched flames. They were joined by the "fire brigade" of ConocoPhillips to assist with any technical expertise that may have aided in the firefight.

However, at no time was the refinery itself or any of its petroleum products ever in jeopardy. Business at the entire ConocoPhillips Refinery will resume following the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday.

Thankfully, no injuries were reported, despite a firefight that lasted 3 hours and 48 minutes. There were no occupants in the building at the time of the fire.

Dollar-loss estimates are not yet available and the exact cause of the blaze is under active investigation by the LAFD's Arson/Counter Terrorism Section.

Dispatched Units: E85 T85 E285 RA85 E38 RA38 E36 E248 T48 EM6 BC6 BC13 E64 E49 E48 E264 T64 E266 T66 DC2 SQ21 EM11 BC11 BC1 T5 E205 E5 UR88 BC4 E33 T33 E233 E15 E10 E295 T95 E221 T21 AR1 EA1 BC18 BC5 RA36 RA101 RA112 EM9 RA79 T26 E226 E3 T11 E211 E61 E210 T10 E37 E2 RT40 RA85 E226 T26 E248 T48 E202 T2 E34 BC11 E215 T15 E61 E101 E292 T92 E229 T29 SU1 RA38 AR33 AR53

Submitted by Matt Spence, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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Confined Space Rescue Frees Two Workers

HARBOR CITY - Two workers performing routine maintenance in a large underground tank, were rescued today after one fell and was injured, and the other followed him down trying to try to help.

At 12:06 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a "Confined Space Rescue" at 3171 North Gaffey Street near Harbor City. A large response was dispatched and even more resources were called to the scene, when it was confirmed that two male employees were approximately 27 feet below ground and in need of help. The incident would require a very technical rescue to be performed by the LAFD's Urban Search & Rescue Team.


Once all technical aspects of this emergency operation were addressed and assembled by the nearly 80 personnel on-scene, two Firefighter/Specialists "made entry" and descended into the "50,000 barrel, fuel-storage tank." A 21 year-old, male employee was found conscious at the bottom of the tank with an injury to one of his lower extremities. He had apparently lost his balance attempting to install a piece of equipment in the tank, resulting in the fall. A male co-worker, of approximately the same age, was not injured as he attempted to assist in his colleague's misfortune. Once rescued, both were evaluated, treated and then transported to a local hospital for further observation.

While the entire incident took much longer, the "Confined Space Rescue" was accomplished in just over one hour. There were no other injuries reported.

Dispatched Units:
E38 RA38 E48 RA64 T48 E248 HR56 EM11 BC4 E85 T5 E205 RA5 UR88 BC6 E64 E285 E5 EM6 DC2 SQ21 RA85 BC11 EM9 EM11 LO1 E49 RA57 H6 RM2 CM2 E21 SU1


Submitted by Matt Spence, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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LAFD Responds to Fire at ConocoPhillips Refinery in Wilmington

WILMINGTON - An on-site leak of hydrogen at the ConocoPhillips Refinery in Wilmington, California ignited a stubborn non-injury fire on Sunday that was brought under control by the refinery's industrial fire brigade without need for evacuation.

The October 9, 2011 event was reported at 9:48 AM by several passersby - including Los Angeles Firefighters, who noted a non-typical plume of smoke from within the 424-acre Wilmington portion of ConocoPhillips Los Angeles Refinery at 1660 West Anaheim Street in Wilmington, nineteen miles south of downtown Los Angeles.

A precautionary response by the Los Angeles Fire Department brought more than 80 LAFD personnel to the scene, including LAFD Hazardous Materials experts, who supported the refinery fire brigade in their skillful handling of the pressurized leak and control of the flames, which involved refinery equipment "the size of a tractor trailer", according to LAFD Battalion Chief Chris Logan.

The overall impact of the leak and fire upon refinery production was not determined by Fire Department responders, who referred such inquiries to ConocoPhillips media relations.

Pursuant of protocol, a formal incident investigation was commenced by the Los Angeles County Health Hazardous Materials Division and South Coast Air Quality Management District officials.

Dispatched Units: E285 T85 E85 E49 E36 E248 T48 BC6 E9 E438 SQ48 RA848 RA38 T48 E248 E11 T11 E211 RA11 RA811 E9 T85 E285 E36 BC13 E266 T66 E112 RA85 EM6 DC2

Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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