Storage Tank Fire Reported at Russian Refinery

Fire tore through a Rosneft owned refinery Monday in Ufa, Russia, leaving one worker dead and another injured.

At about 7:20 p.m., the Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCON) received message about two storage tanks burning at the Ufaorgsintez refinery, 1,352 kilometers west of Moscow. Air monitoring was immediately activated.

Eyewitnesses report hearing an explosion early in the emergency, EMERCON reports.

One tank has been reported destroyed. A second tank containing natural gas is burning with a torch reaching 10 to 15 meters high.

“Cooling of equipment and containers is underway,” EMERCON reports. “Gas supply is shut off. As the remaining gas is burned out, the fire will be localized and extinguished.”

EMERCON reports that one person working in the gas separation shop is missing and one casualty is hospitalized. However, Reuters reports that one person died and one other was hospitalized.

There is no threat of the fire spreading, EMERCON states.

PJSC Rosneft Oil is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Moscow. It is the world's largest publicly traded petroleum companies.