A Louisiana environmental group on Tuesday accused ExxonMobil of poorly maintaining its Baton Rouge refinery, where four workers were burned in a Nov. 22 fire, for years.
Reuters reports The Louisiana Bucket Brigade, which works to improve safety and reduce pollution from refineries and chemical plants in the state, pointed to findings of a 2012 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency inspection of the refinery as proof of longstanding flaws in maintenance.
“This accident fits in a pattern of a poorly maintained facility that has consistent and constant accidents,” says Anne Rolfes, Louisiana Bucket Brigade director.
An ExxonMobil spokeswoman criticized the group’s work.
“We have not read this latest report, but the Bucket Brigade’s previous reports have consistently contained deliberate inaccuracies and misrepresent industry activities,” says spokeswoman Ashley Alemayehu.
The 2012 EPA inspection found fault with ExxonMobil’s maintenance of some equipment and certain procedures at the Baton Rouge refinery.
The cause of last week’s fire has not been determined. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board are investigating the blaze on an alkylation unit. The safety board said six workers were injured. Four were admitted to a Baton Rouge hospital in critical condition.
The four injured workers still are being treated at Baton Rouge General Medical Center, a hospital spokeswoman says. Three patients are in fair condition, while one remains in serious condition.
