A hydrocarbon release at a Chevron refinery in Richmond, California last August engulfed nineteen workers in a vapor cloud and sparked a fire that caused nearby residents to be evacuated. Now the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is preparing to make public the results of its investigation into the incident.

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) and the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) have released a technical evaluation report on piping samples taken from the Chevron Refinery in Richmond, California, where a hydrocarbon release and massive fire occurred on August 6, 2012.

The California Division of Occupational Safety & Health (Cal/OSHA) has issued 25 citations against Chevron USA, with proposed penalties totaling nearly $1 million, for state safety standard violations related to the August 6, 2012 fire at Chevron’s Richmond refinery.

Animosity between the Chemical Safety Board and OSHA has reached “the boiling point” and was made public several months ago following the Chevron catastrophic explosion in California, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

Although the photos released by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) were taken nine miles away, the vapor cloud rising from the burning Chevron Richmond Refinery is enormous.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has decided to pursue a full investigation to determine the causes of last week’s fire at the Chevron oil refinery in Richmond, California, northeast of San Francisco.
 

A seven-member investigative team from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is en route to the scene of an explosion and fire that occurred Monday at the Chevron Refinery in Richmond, CA.